Passed out drunk on a Hong Kong street? There's an Instagram page for that

A man lies in front of a 7-Eleven that, from the front, looks as if someone's rampaged through the convenience store.

He's sprawled on top of a display that's been knocked over. Two men come over, help him up and sit him by the storefront to take care of him. Another starts to clean up, while the cashier can be seen making a phone call from behind the counter.

The manager of Instagram page LKF Meltdown counts this among the top posts on the account. LKF stands for Lan Kwai Fong, Hong Kong's notoriously rowdy bar district in the city's Central neighbourhood on Hong Kong Island.

"I think one of our earlier posts is my favourite," they say. "Some poor guy just stumbled out of a 7/11 destroying the entire display."

The manager, who requests not to be identified, says they started the page to highlight the colourful moments of nightlife Lan Kwai Fong has been famous for. They say they are "vets with a ton [sic] of experience" in Hong Kong's drinking culture.

"What actually prompted us to start this account was just to bring attention and showcase the LKF culture we've all come to know and love," they say. "We love seeing the predicaments people get themselves in and wondering 'how did this even happen?'"

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The drinking culture that LKF thrives on does tend to get revellers into interesting "predicaments".

Many of the posts feature drinkers passed out in various poses around Lan Kwai Fong — on the pavement, at the foot of an escalator, atop a taxi, or propped up against a banner urging people to "know your limit, drink responsibly".

Posts with more action include a man on his back clinging to a taxi that's dragging him down the street, and someone halfway out of a taxi, doing a handstand on the street, and completely naked.

The page, which has about 43,000 followers, can receive anywhere from 80 to 120 content submissions on any given weekend, and even more if it's a holiday. Not all the photos posted come from Lan Kwai Fong itself; some were taken nearby.

"I think Halloween is probably the craziest; people in costumes go the extra mile when it comes to going over the top," they say. "Second to that would probably be junk season [a reference to Hong Kong's junk boat parties]. You see a lot of people roll off a boat and stumble into public looking to continue the party, essentially finding themselves waking up on a random staircase or kerb at some point."

Right now much of the account's content includes countdowns to the end of the city's current social restrictions, which include the closure of bars and a ban on dine-in customers at restaurants after 6pm. Restrictions imposed to curb the coronavirus pandemic have impacted businesses in the party district.

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The manager for LKF Meltdown says they try to highlight local businesses by posting their content during this time to be supportive. They want to make page visitors laugh, but also want them to keep in mind events that could potentially impact the culture of Lan Kwai Fong.

"The drinking culture here is what makes this city so great," they say. "We try to keep everyone as anonymous as possible because we know we're all out to have a good time, but also it's so amazing to see how much fun everyone is having regularly.

"Nothing says Hong Kong like someone passed out on the street with a Cup Noodle at their side."

READ ALSO: ‘So many people cannot bring me down’: Drunk man resists arrest at Balestier

This article was first published in South China Morning Post.