HONG KONG – Police in hazmat suits entered the US Consulate General in Hong Kong Monday after an envelope containing white powder sparked a security alert at the complex.

Visa appointments were cancelled and members of the public queing to enter were ordered to leave as the consulate scrambled to react to the incident.

Uniformed police officers were also seen donning gas masks outside the building in the busy Central district of the southern Chinese financial hub.

Four police vans and a bomb disposal truck were seen deployed at the sealed-off main entrance.

However, the consulate later said the powder was not found to be hazardous.

“We can confirm that an envelope containing white powder was opened inside the Consulate General today,” a spokesperson for the US consulate said.

“The incident has now been resolved. Visa appointments for the rest of the day remain cancelled,” the spokesperson added.

“As always, our highest priority is the safety of our personnel and visitors.”

One of the world’s great long-distance athletes has added his praise for rockstar Artiwara “Toon” Kongmalai’s epic 2,191-kilometre run for charity.

Britain’s Mo Farah, who has twice won Olympic gold medals at both the 5,000 and 10,000 metres, has posted a photo of himself holding a running shoe on his Facebook page “Mo Farah” and Instagram “gomofarah”, saying: “Keep running @artiwara. Leave all your records behind. The next step is a new start. #breakthrough #break2191k”.

The shoe he carried was also signed with a message “To Toon Keep on running!”

The 34-year-old Farah, who was born in Somalia before migrating to the Britain at the age of eight, is regarded as one of the great all-time athletes after doing the 5,000-metre and 10,000-metre double at both London 2012 and Rio 2016.

Thailand’s Mental Health Department director-general Boonrueng Trairuengworawat pointed out yesterday that Artiwara’s cross-country marathon from Yala to Chiang Rai highlighted five positive happiness-boosting aspects:

1. People coming together to do good things with their hearts and learning to give without expecting anything in return.

2. The example of self-esteem and admiration for oneself and others, resulting in encouraging people have more energy to live their lives with happiness and less stress.

3. The example of goal-setting and optimism about the future empowering people to have determination, willpower to achieve and eventually succeed despite obstacles

4. The example of encouragement from people around, such as family members, boyfriends and girlfriends, and friends and fans that gave the sense of unity and camaraderie to overcome problems and to maintain one’s focus to achieve a goal.

5. The benefits of exercise that help the brain produce endorphin, which is the body’s “feel good” chemical, making a person more cheerful and less stressed.

Boonrueng urged the public to apply these five happiness-boosting factors in their own lives.

Meanwhile, Dr Wiranpat Kittitharaphan, deputy director of the Mental Health Service, said the “Toon Fever” phenomenon also gave society a hero that inspired children and young adults to learn about the benefit of sacrifice to do good things without wanting anything in return and how exercise is good for health.

“This can create a good image in young minds so they follow such good things. You can already see some children bringing their piggy banks to give donations to the 11 hospitals that Artiwara’s run is raising money for,” Wiranpat said.

“Even those suffering from depression can be inspired by Artiwara’s run,” she said. Having a good role model to learn that people can do good deeds despite having no monetary reward was important to children and youths, she said, as this age group’s members were looking for examples and wanted acceptance from their peers and society.

Artiwara’s progress in the marathon can be followed on the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/kaokonlakao/.

A Colombian TV show racially discriminated against Asians by imitating its national football player’s actions.

Edwin Cardona, a Colombian football player, made a racist mocking gesture at Korean captain Ki Sung-yueng during a friendly match last Friday in Korea.

Ki later said, “(Dirty play on the field) sometimes happens. But racial discrimination can never be accepted.”

The Colombian player later apologised through the Colombian Football Association “for causing misunderstandings.”

Meanwhile, a Colombian TV show titled “La Kalle” is also accused of racial discrimination, with its hosts imitating Cardona’s racist gesture.

After showing clips of the football player mocking Asians on the field, the hosts of the show and their guests lifted the corners of their eyes — making a “slanted eyes” gesture — and laughing.

One of the guests even wore a face mask in an apparent move to mock Asians.

The Ministry of Employment and Labor will investigate a university-affiliated private hospital at which nurses were pressured to perform a suggestive dance in revealing clothes during a sports event.

Nurses at the Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, claimed that they were forced to dance in front of some 1,000 co-workers and hospital officials during an annual sports competition, held October.

The case came to the light after a video of scantily-clad women seductively dancing on stage was uploaded on Facebook by a hospital whistle-blower.

Local media said the ministry — which has been investigating the medical foundation for alleged delayed payment of wages — added the case of the dancing nurses to its probe list.

The nurses also claim that they were coerced to work extra hours without pay. The ministry had been scrutinizing the allegations of delayed wage payment amounting to the sum of 24 billion won (S$29 million) at Kangdong Sacred Heart Hospital in Gil-dong, Seoul.

Ministry inspectors are reportedly poised to make a field visit to the Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital and meet the nurses to take their statements.

Should the ministry find circumstantial evidence that the hospitals violated the Labor Standards Act, it may lead to a criminal investigation.