A large group of foreigners have apparently made a habit of gathering outside Lucky Plaza every weekend and on public holidays, according to some residents in the area.
Aside from allegedly playing loud music, smoking, drinking, and even peeing in public, the foreigners also trespass and linger at the corridor of a nearby housing complex until the wee hours of the morning.
Residents told the Lianhe Zaobao that the noise the group makes was so loud that they could not sleep at night. Some even resorted to making multiple police reports, to no avail.
One resident, a 29-year-old, told the publication that the crowd has been gathering there since last July and usually congregate at the site of a fatal car crash that took place in December 2019. A car ploughed into six domestic workers, causing two deaths.
The resident said that over 20 people gather to smoke and drink at the area and have a “party” by broadcasting loud music and dancing. At the end of the night, the crowd leaves a pile of rubbish in their wake.
Sundays are apparently the worst since the crowd descends from 1pm in the afternoon and stays until 1am the next day. The resident told Lianhe Zaobao:Â “I am awakened by the noise downstairs every time, and I go out to hide every Sunday.”
Even though the police have received about 10 reports regarding this matter since July, the resident said that the situation has not improved since the police can only disperse the crowd and could not arrest them since the number of people in each group did not exceed the limit set by the authorities.
Unable to take the noise, the resident and others like him spent money to buy soundproofing panels to install on their windows. Revealing that his solution only dulled the noise, he said: “After installing the sound insulation equipment, the noise is reduced by about 50%, but it is still audible, and the noise cannot be completely eliminated.
“We also reported to the landlord that (sic) he said there was nothing he could do and advised us to report to the police.”
Another resident, a 27-year-old hotel worker, described the music and noise to be like what one would hear at a “disco”. Revealing that he too has lost sleep over the noise disturbance, he said: “I also tried to tell them to speak down from the window, but they refused to listen and would come back the next day.”
The hotel worker resorted to using paper to cover his windows in a makeshift bid to reduce the harsh noise emanating from the party downstairs.
Another resident, a 29-year-old salesperson, recounted: “Every Monday, I see wrapping paper and cups downstairs all over the floor, as well as a strong smell of alcohol and urine. I can accept them in groups, but at least they have to take the garbage away, otherwise it will be really disgusting.”
A Lianhe Zaobao visited the area on New Years Day and saw the crowd at the accident site. The crowd turned a blind eye to the signs put up by Lucky Plaza asking the public not to gather in the area.
Describing the scene as noisy, the reporter said that the large crowd was divided into groups of seven or eight people. The foreigners were seen smoking and drinking, while singing songs. The area was also littered with discarded soda cans, cigarettes and potato chip bags, with the distinct smell of alcohol and urine wafting in the air.
A sudden downpour that occurred about 30 minutes saw the crowd rush to the housing block for shelter. The reporter said that over 20 people did not observe the social distancing measures and continued to eat, drink and party.
When approached, one drunken man reportedly said: “We are just relaxing here during the holidays and having fun.”