Number of fire hazards jumps 10 pct

Lam Io Fan (middle)

The Fire Services Bureau (CB) has called on residents to be more aware of household fire hazards after revealing in a press conference on Friday that the number of call-outs for fire cases rose by 10.4 percent year-
on-year in 2014. The bureau also revealed that discussions have been taking place with the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT) regarding amendments to the current regulations on fire safety.
CB responded to a total of 43,079 call-outs last year, 5.7 percent higher than the 40,856 in 2013. Amongst these cases in 2014, the number of fire call-
outs was 1,186, surging by 10.4 percent compared to the figure two years ago. Ambulance call-
outs were still the majority of all CB operations last year, increasing by 6.8 percent y-o-y to 36,521. The number of rescue operations and special services call-outs have dropped by 4.14 percent and 1.49 percent to 1,203 and 4,169 respectively.
CB assisting principal chief Lam Io Fan said that the major factor contributing to the increase in fire cases is the soar in home fires, which were mainly caused by electrical overloading and unattended cooking. He called on residents to heighten their awareness of fire prevention.
During the press conference, CB was asked about the high number of ambulance call-outs and whether there were statistics for ambulance abuse. Assisting principal chief Lam claimed that the CB does not gather statistics on ambulance abuse because it is not up to the bureau to determine whether a case is an abuse of the ambulance service. “It is very difficult to determine [a case] based on the available evidence… We have regular meetings with relevant departments such as the Health Bureau on the issue,” he said.
Lam also said that it has been communicating with other government departments such as DSSOPT regarding amendments to the regulation on fire safety. Currently, DSSOPT is the institution responsible for monitoring the implementation of the regulation, not the CB. JPL