40
PART III THE DISTURBANCES
some moved away although a number still remained, but this caused him no whi particular anxiety and he moved on with the Marine company to the junction of con Nathan Road and Waterloo Road to report to Mr. Rose.
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150. Meanwhile at 11.30 p.m. the Kowloon City Company had been ordered to move from Kowloon City Police Station to deal with a reported crowd at Tsim Sha Tsui but found no one there other than ordinary citizens going about their business, although the area was somewhat congested because buses were not leaving for the Nathan Road area. Then, receiving radio instructions to go to the assistance of the other companies Mr. TODD moved his company up Canton Road to Public Square Street near the Yau Ma Tei Police Station where he found crowds milling about in the roads, the majority of them 25 years or younger. When they tra saw this unit arriving, they split up into small groups and started to disperse northwards up Temple Street. He followed them up Temple Street and at the junction of Man Ming Lane the crowd started to throw stones, bottles, pieces of wood, contractor's lamps, and anything they could get their hands on at the police vehicles. The company alighted and started to engage these crowds. Tear smoke was fired and the crowd retreated westwards towards Shanghai Street and Canton Road as well as northwards. Mr. TODD then took his company out into Nathan Road arriving there shortly after midnight when he saw a large crowd south of Gascoigne Road and missiles being thrown at another police unit already there.
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151. Approaching midnight, the position in the area of Nathan Road between lar Waterloo Road and Gascoigne Road presented many aspects of a general mêlée, although tear smoke and baton charges had to a great extent dispersed the rioters off Nathan Road mainly into the side streets on the west side, where they gathered into smaller groups and continued to throw missiles at the police. There were reports of trouble to the north and the south and many street fires burning but the police formations were intact, firmly under the control of their commanders and confident in their capacity to deal with any opposition that did not disperse and melt away in front of them. Mr. ROSE had immediately available in the Public Square Street/Gascoigne Road/Nathan Road area the Headquarter company, the Police Training Contingent company, the Yau Ma Tei company as well as the two companies which had come up from the south, the Marine company and the Kowloon City company, whilst two platoons of the Sham Shui Po company were also coming down from the north by a route west of Nathan Road which was itself blocked. The Police Training Contingent company was held in the Gascoigne Road junction area, whilst the Headquarter company was directed to sweep down Nathan Road to the south. The Yau Ma Tei company was also held in the area between Waterloo Road and Tak Cheong Street. When the Kowloon City company reached Nathan Road, it was directed also to move south but by a different route and to come out onto Nathan Road by Austin Road and then to move northward, the idea being to provide a pincer movement with the Headquarter company
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