More calls to Fire Services in 2016

The CB Commander, Leong Iok Sam

The Fire Services (CB) was called to a total of 45,778 cases in 2016, 557 higher than the previous year and an increase of 1.23 percent year-on-year.

During a press conference yesterday, CB Commander Leong Iok Sam said that all operational areas had reported an increase in the number of cases.

The report indicates a higher increase in cases related to the CB “special services,” which includes incidents resulting from falling objects and trees, gas leaks and misuse of dangerous products.

Leong noted that the increase in cases involving falling objects and trees was largely due to the effects of typhoons.

Rescue operation services were involved in a total of 1,461 cases in 2016, an 88 case increase, which accounts for a growth of 6.41 percent year-on-year. Most of those cases were related to sea rescues, although there were rescue events in other areas, such as the May 4 event involving a man from the mainland. He engaged in a stand-off that lasted around 18 hours while threatening to commit suicide by jumping from a building.

Leong Iok Sam also mentioned several major incidents in 2016, including the February 11 fire that destroyed one of the pavilions of A-Ma Temple in Barra, the tourist bus crash at Rua da Entena that left 32 injured and caused severe damage to one building, a December 20 accident involving two tourist buses in the surrounding area of the Broadway Hotel that left 57 injured people and also the December 27 blaze that destroyed 89 motorcycles on Avenida Norte do Hipodromo.

According to the CB Commander, local residents were cooperative regarding fire prevention.

False calls to emergency services was less significant, Leong said: “The CB had reinforced awareness and information campaigns about the appropriate use of ambulances from last year, in order to achieve a decrease in the number of calls, […] which registered a significant reduction when compared to the results of the past 10 years.”

As for the major tasks of the CB over the past year, Leong highlighted the successful creation of the “special rescue team,” officially established on September 2016 and aiming to provide a fast response to “big, serious and complicated disasters or accidents” in order to “increase efficiency in rescue and minimize the losses through the use of advanced equipment, professional techniques and effective strategies.”

The CB chief said that the primary task for this year will be the creation of the new regime of communitarian fire safety, as stated by the Secretary for Security, Wong Sio Chak. Although details on when and what will be covered by the regime are yet to be announced, Leong said “we have already delivered our opinions to the government,” hinting that there is a possibility of the establishment of penalties for those that do not comply with the rules.

Coloane, Ilha Verde and HKZM bridge are future challenges

Remarking on the upcoming challenges for the Fire Services (CB), Leong Iok Sam specified all the areas of Coloane, Ilha Verde and the new operation of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HKZMB) for which the CB has already commenced planning the infrastructure to meet those needs.

There are planned and ongoing works for the new Fire Station in Coloane, aiming to provide a fast response to the areas of Cotai, Seac Pai Van as well as increase the support to the operations in Hengqin, the airport and Fuel Park.

Also, Ilha Verde is expected to begin operations in a temporary operations center to support the works for the new border crossing at Guangdong-Macau (Qingmao Border checkpoint) and to bolster the current development of Ilha Verde in terms of several major infrastructure projects.

The CB also expects to shortly complete an operations center that is being built at the exit point of the HKZMB – on the new landfills near the Border Gate – in order to improve the response to any incidents on the bridge.

It was also said that besides the building of additional infrastructure, such developments present a big challenge to CB in terms of human resources.