Hong Kong  - Safety checks on lifts in Hong Kong's high-rise apartment blocks were being stepped up Wednesday after five people were trapped between floors in the latest of a series of scares.

In the most serious incident, a lift plunged 14 floors to the ground on October 25 as seven of its eight steel supporting cables snapped seconds after a woman stepped out.

In the most recent incident Sunday, five people were trapped between the seventh and eighth floor of a housing block when a supporting cable snapped, housing officials confirmed.

Most of the affected lifts are of a type used widely in public housing blocks across the city of 6.9 million, and urgent checks were being carried out Wednesday to examine all lifts for flaws.

The incidents appear to all involve older high-rise buildings and in some cases involve lifts whose maintenance contracts had recently changed hands.

The majority of people in Hong Kong live in high-rise apartment blocks and use lifts several times every day. (dpa)