Authorities have launched an investigation as questions remain over the path taken by the plane upon landing.
Airport officials have said they gave the correct instructions to the cargo plane and that there are signs on the runway to guide planes.
Airport operations executive director Steven Yiu said the patrol car was, at the time, travelling on a road outside of the runway’s fencing “at a safe distance from the runway”.
The plane then turned away from the runway. It crashed through the fencing and collided with the vehicle, pushing it into the sea, according to Mr Yiu.
He stressed that the car “definitely did not run out onto the runway”.
“Normally the plane is not supposed to turn towards the sea,” Mr Yiu said at a press conference hours after the incident, adding that the plane did not send out a distress signal when it was landing.
Divers managed to locate the patrol vehicle passengers’ bodies in the sea.
The two dead ground staff were aged 30 and 41. They had seven and 12 years’ experience respectively, according to officials.
Hong Kong’s transport bureau has said it was “saddened” by their deaths and expressed condolences to their families.
In a statement to the BBC, an Emirates spokesperson said the plane “sustained damage on landing in Hong Kong”, adding: “Crew are confirmed to be safe and there was no cargo onboard.”
It also said the Boeing 747-481 cargo aircraft was wet leased from and operated by Turkish carrier Act Airlines. A wet lease is an arrangement where one airline provides the aircraft, crew, and insurance to another airline.
The four crew members onboard the plane had broke open the emergency doors of the aircraft shortly after the crash. They were spotted by fire service staff who arrived at the scene within two minutes, and were rescued.
Pictures show the plane had broken into half, with part of the fuselage submerged in the water with visible large cracks. At least one emergency evacuation slide deployed successfully.