Passers-by took photos as they walked past exit F, recognizing it as the site of a huge fire started by violent protesters the previous night. Burn marks on the floor were plainly visible as were charred trash bins by the pavement.

A broken glass wall at exit K has been covered temporarily with plastic curtains. Garbage thrown down the stairs by the radical protesters on Sunday night was removed by cleaning workers. Dozens of planters pushed down the stairs were retrieved and returned to Statue Square in Central.

A cleaner who wishes to stay anonymous said she arrived at 7 am to erase the graffiti sprayed indiscriminately on outer walls of metro stations, phone booths, and advertising boards.

"(These facilities) They have nothing to do with the protests and should not be damaged," she said, busy rubbing with a rag.

On Sunday, most shops and restaurants in the area closed right after the MTR station announced suspension of services at 4 pm.

Nass, 28, a shop manager in Central, said Sunday was the first time his establishment had closed earlier than usual in recent months. "But if it (the violence and vandalism) continues, or occurs even once a month, our company may have to lay off some staff," said Nass, adding that the retail heartland of Hong Kong continued to see fewer visitors since the protests began three months ago.

People usually went shopping with families and friends over the weekend, but nowadays many avoided going out on weekends, said Nass.

Yadav, 76, a resident of Indian origin, said he had to walk to work at 8:30 pm on Sunday because buses and metro were out of service at that time as chaos reigned in the area.

He found it unbelievable that no one except patrolling police officers could be seen on the streets. On Sunday nights, the area is usually crowded with visitors.

"I don't know when this will stop. But what protesters did was very bad. People living here are having a very difficult time," Yadav said.