Riot police officers placed at CE's talk venue

Riot police officers placed at CE's talk venue

A few police officers were seen patrolling the area ahead of the event. Photo: RTHK

All the parking area near the stadium has been cleared. Photo: RTHK

A group of riot police officers have moved into Queen Elizabeth Stadium in Wan Chai where Chief Executive Carrie Lam will be holding a meeting with the public on Thursday evening.



The officers who went into the stadium were carrying gear which included pepper spray solution and tear gas canisters.



The government announced that several health clinics and dentists in Wan Chai were closing early at 4pm, in light of the "situations" in the area.



Cars parked on the road leading to the stadium were cleared by 2pm and a few officers from the Police Tactical Unit were seen patrolling the area. But there were still no barriers set up or other crowd control measures around.



The schools in the area had closed early and some parents who had come to fetch their children said they were not told why classes were ending early, but they had expected an early closure due to the dialogue event.



Ahead of her first meeting with 150 members of the public to try and find a solution to the ongoing extradition bill crisis, Lam posted a message on her Facebook page, saying she is looking forward to the event.



Lam said that people who applied to attend the event but were not lucky enough to be picked need not feel disappointed as the event will be telecast live by the government's Information Services Department and other news media have also been invited.