Hong Kong: Homeless Woman Dies Inside McDonald’s Restaurant, No One Notices Her For 24 Hours

In a shocking incident, a middle-aged, homeless woman died inside a 24-hour McDonald’s outlet in Hong Kong without anyone noticing. The South China Morning Post reports that the unidentified woman was estimated to be between 50- and 60-years-old and that she had entered the restaurant on Sunday morning. The report adds that the woman slumped on her table on Sunday, passed away, and remained there for the next 24 hours before people figured out something was wrong with her. Officials are now trying to ascertain the identity of the woman.

According to The Blaze, the incident happened at a busy, 24-hour McDonald’s outlet located at Hong Kong’s Ping Shek Estate. People and the employees there were so busy, they didn’t notice the woman slumped and lying dead for an entire day. She was sitting in a quiet corner of the McDonald’s, which could be one of the reasons she was not noticed by either fellow diners or the employees at the restaurant. Upon examining the CCTV footage from the restaurant, she was seen entering the outlet more than 24 hours before she was found dead.

The woman was described as being between 50 and 60 years of age. She was around 1.6 meters tall, had short hair, and was wearing black rimmed spectacles at the time of her death. Officials did not find any documents that would have established her identity. They are hoping to reach out to her relatives by describing her outfit. She was dressed in a grey overcoat under which she wore a white t-shirt, black trousers, and sleepers. She also had a bag and a wallet with her. Primary speculation is that the woman was a homeless street-sleeper and used to spend her nights sleeping over or staying inside 24/7 restaurants like this McDonald’s outlet.

The woman’s body was noticed by a McDonald’s employee on Monday morning at around 8:30 a.m., local time. He described the woman to be “unresponsive and cold.” Sensing trouble, he called up the police and emergency services who later proclaimed the woman dead at the restaurant. Hong Kong police officials have begun the investigation and have at this time confirmed that there is nothing suspicious in her death and that she died of natural causes. After examining the CCTV footage from the restaurant, authorities figured out that the woman had entered the McDonald’s outlet at 8:39 a.m., on Sunday, the previous day. She took a seat near the bathroom and remained there for a few hours. At around 1:20 p.m., local time, she suddenly slumped over her table – probably without making any noise or grabbing anyone’s attention. She remained in the slumped position till next morning even as diners had their food sitting near her.

After the woman was declared dead, police and McDonald’s officials cordoned off the area. However, the outlet continued to operate. By 11:30 a.m, the body of the woman was removed through a back door and was taken to a mortuary. By 1 p.m, the restaurant was back to normal.

Following the shocking incident, McDonald’s Hong Kong issued a statement expressing grief over the unfortunate incident. A spokesman added that they would co-operate with the police for the investigation and that the restaurant was cleaned and disinfected following the incident. They also added that the woman did not order anything from the outlet – but did ask for water. They also revealed that owing to the busy nature of Hong Kong citizens, they do not tend to disturb their customers sitting inside. Customers can, however, call out to them if they require anything, the statement added.

Do you think public apathy is to blame here? How can one be seated next to a dead person and not realize it?

[Images Via Justin Sullivan/Getty Images, SCMP Images]