The man, Yeung, 71, was hiking from Tsuen Wan with relatives at noon yesterday when he decided to take a hillside shortcut, during which he fell and sustained head injuries. Yeung was conscious as he was sent to Prince of Wales hospital.

As of 8pm yesterday, he remained in a stable condition.

That marks the second such incident within the last two days at the Lower Shing Mun Reservoir.

On Saturday, the 54-year old man, Kwan, fell from a 30-meter slope and was found unconscious at the bottom of the main dam. He was airlifted and rushed to hospital for treatment, but was later declared dead.

The reservoir has drawn crowds after drying up and forming mud cracks. According to the Water Supplies Department's latest storage position on April 1, the current storage at the reservoir is 0.096 million cubic meters, only 2.23 percent of its full storage.

Some enthusiasts have set up climbing ropes so that visitors can rappel down the hillside and reach the reservoir to film and take photos.

One woman, Yip, who climbed and slid down the reservoir with a climbing rope said: "The rocks on the slope were loose and the slope was really steep and slippery."

Climbing expert Chung Kin-man said reservoirs were not meant for hiking and warned hikers to be cautious when hiking steep slopes, including at popular hiking spots such as Sharp Peak, Tiu Shau Ngam and more.

"Hiking via a climbing rope does not necessarily mean it is safe since no one checks if the climbing rope is secure and safe," Chung said.

The Water Supplies Department said in a reminder that breaking into the reservoir area constitutes illegal entry.