A Hong Kong teenager studying law in London who was killed in the Bangkok bomb blast was 'kind, cheerful food blogger crazy about Canto-pop', friends recall

Vivian Chan was studying law in the UK. (South China Morning Post photo)

A Hong Kong resident who was studying law in Britain and was killed by a devastating bomb blast in Bangkok on Monday, was today described by former schoolmates as a kind, cheerful teenager who loved blogging about food and was crazy about Canto-pop.

Vivian Chan Wing-yan, 19, was a hard worker and a good singer, according to her school friends, the South China Morning Post reported.

Chan was travelling in Thailand with her friend Arcadia Pang Wan-chee, 24, when they were both killed in the bomb attack on Bangkok's Erawan shrine on Monday night.

Harrow International School pupil Michelle Lou said she had only heard about her former schoolmate's death Tuesday morning and was still in shock.

"She was a really kind and cheerful person in general -- she really loved to travel around and just go to a lot of different, good restaurants," she said.

British Prime Minister David Cameron also offered his condolences via a message posted on Twitter on Tuesday:

"Deeply saddened to hear a British national was killed in the horrific Bangkok bombing. My thoughts are with her family & all those affected", the message said.

Allan Chan Sui Wah, 54, Vivian's father, said his family was informed by Hong Kong immigration around 3am Tuesday that their daughter had been killed in the blast.

The businessman and his wife caught the first flight to Bangkok and went straight to the Police General Hospital's Institute of Forensic Medicine. They were accompanied by Hong Kong immigration and Chinese embassy officials.

The father said he had travelled to Thailand several times. As he thought the country was safe, he had allowed Vivian, his eldest daughter, to take holidays in the kingdom during her summer break.

She and three friends flew from the UK to Bangkok but visited the shrine only with Arcadia, who was killed instantly. Chan sustained serious shrapnel wounds to the back and died later at the hospital.

Ms Lou said Chan had been a big fan of Canto-pop, in particular singer Joey Yung, whom she had met, sharing photos of the two together on Facebook.

"Everyone in the school knew she was a crazy fan of [Yung], so whenever anyone said anything about her and Canto-pop, Vivian just went crazy about it," Ms Lou said.

On her Facebook page, Yung posted a tribute to her biggest fan in the form of a poem, along with a photo of the two together.

"You have left a deep impression in me. Your wit, loveliness and your smile with dimples on the cheek," she said.

"Thank you for being in my life. Our last conversation you said you would study hard and then we meet again. [I] never thought life could be that fickle ... I hope you rest in peace."

Chan had been working for at least a year on the Kittealuvfood food blog which has 11,000 Instagram followers, a school friend said.

In the site's latest post, likely written by Chan, she talked enthusiastically of the fresh raw crab sashimi she had eaten the day before in Thailand.

"Definitely a must-try when you come to Bangkok! Fair price with [high] quality dishes!" she wrote on Instagram.

Beneath the most recent post, one Instagram user wrote: "RIP".

A tribute page has been set up on Facebook in honour of Chan, which had attracted more than 1,500 likes Wednesday afternoon.

"I still can't believe this is real ... I still believe Vivian is alive... I miss you, please come back my sister," one Facebook user wrote.

Tom Tse Ka-chun, a former university friend of Pang at the Tsing Yi campus of the Institute of Vocational Educational, said they had studied human resource management together.

"Arcadia was very gentle and quiet. She was always very friendly. I remember we often helped each other out in our coursework," he said. Mr Tse said he was still shocked after hearing the news of his former school-friend's death. "It felt very sudden. I couldn't imagine this would happen," he said.

Chan quoted a Canto-pop song by Juno Mak in a caption for her travel photos on Facebook.

"The most touching moment may not last forever. Unforgettable because you always have it in mind," she wrote.