How Hong Kong’s Choi Hung MTR station spawned rumours of deaths and gates of hell
Station plays storied role in history of city’s MTR network and has sparked outlandish rumours and beliefs over the years
For years, rumours circulated on the internet that a string of MTR workers had died on the middle rail track at Choi Hung station on the Kwun Tong line in Hong Kong’s bustling Kowloon area, and anyone brave enough to venture into one of the dimly lit tunnels would soon find themselves before the gates of hell.
The fact the station had three tracks rather than the standard two helped fuel those outlandish claims.
The truth is decidedly less blood-curdling, with the third track serving a prosaic purpose: taking trains to the nearby depot for repairs and maintenance.
“There have been rumours about Choi Hung station since the Kwun Tong line started operating in 1979,” said Lai Yee-ngok, a retired supervisor of the depot and a former train captain on the rail line. “The station has a strategic position in the repair and maintenance of trains.”
As a key stop on the Kwun Tong line that serves Kowloon East between Tiu Keng Leng and Whampoa, the station takes its name from the nearby Choi Hung Estate. The estate is home to about 43,000 residents, with rainbow-coloured tower blocks that have become a selfie hotspot for mainland Chinese tourists.
