HONG KONG
PRICE: $ 1
ANNUAL
DEPARTMENTAL
REPORTS
1953-54
CHIEF OFFICER,
FIRE BRIGADE
HONG KONG
ANNUAL DEPARTMENTAL REPORT
BY THE
CHIEF OFFICER, FIRE BRIGADE
FOR THE
FINANCIAL YEAR 1953-54
PRINTED AND PUBLISHED BY THE GOVERNMENT PRINTER,
HONG KONG.
CONTENTS
FIRE AND OTHER OCCURRENCES
FALSE ALARMS
CAUSES OF FIRES
CASUALTIES
FIRE RISK
STAFF
APPLIANCES AND EQUIPMENT
FIRE BOATS
HYDRANTS AND WATER SUPPLY
INSPECTION BRANCH AND FIRE PREVENTION
AMBULANCE SERVICE
AWARDS
TRAINING
AUXILIARY FIRE SERVICE
GENERAL
CONCLUSION
Paragraphs
1
7
8
-
6
9 - 10
11
12 - 13
14
16
17
19
20 - 26
27
30
31 - 37
38 - 40
41
42 - 49
50
51
WARING
FIRE AND OTHER OCCURRENCES
1. A total of 630 calls were received and responded to by the Brigade during the year under review as against 695 for the preceding year. Classifications of these calls were as
follows:
Fires:
House Electrical
104
98
Chimney
64
Cars etc.
9
Oil
52
Grass & Shrubbery
64
Rubbish
20
Ship
13
Aircraft
2
Squatter
50
Miscellaneous
30
506
False Alarms:
With Good Intent
27
Electrical defects
5
Malicious
25
57
Special Services:
Landslides, House Collapse, drown-
ing etc.
Total
67
67
630
The estimated monetary loss by fires is $6,507,438.00 (Rate of exchange:
$16=£1).
2. The number of serious fires was not as great as in previous years. I append hereunder brief details of the more notable fires:
5th July, 1953--Lighter "Kwan Yick 15". A disastrous fire
involving 43 drums (10 tons) of Nitrocellulose film scrap stowed on board the lighter "Kwan
1
Yick 15" anchored at the Dangerous Goods anchorage off Stonecutters Island, occurred at about 5.42 a.m. on the 5th July, 1953. 4 persons on board were burnt to death before the arrival of Fire Float No. 2; one person was reported missing and presumed dead. A Revenue Launch and a Naval fire boat also proceeded to the scene of the fire and rendered assistance in this operation.
25th Dec., 1953-Pak Tin, Wor Chai & Shek Kip Mei Villages, Kowloon. On Christmas night 1953, at about 9.39 p.m. a disastrous fire occurred in one of the largest squatter areas of the Colony. The fire involved the Pak Tin, Shek Kip Mei and Wor Chai Villages, Kowloon, and a large number of miscellaneous wood and stone mushroom factories, stores, workshops and squatter huts were destroyed. The Brigade encountered extreme difficulty in the laying out of hose lines as thousands of squatters carrying their personal belongings rushed out of the area from the few narrow lanes. A strong variable wind blowing at the time added to the difficulties of fire fighting operations and assisted the spread of the fire. The fire was finally brought under control and extinguished with 35 deliveries. The Auxil- iary Fire Service were called out and rendered valuable assistance in this operation. Two persons lost their lives at this fire.
3. Apart from the one mentioned above, there were 49 other outbreaks of fire in squatter areas in the Colony. These involved large areas and heavy damage in many cases. Squatter fires are difficult to control in view of the flimsy materials used in the construction of the huts and the lack of fire breaks in the areas. However on many occasions the Fire Brigade was able to confine the fire to relatively small areas, due to prior
2
fire fighting arrangements having been made, the constant lectures on fire prevention given to the squatters and the quick arrival of the Fire Brigade.
4. The Brigade was called out on two occasions by the Civil Aviation Department to render assistance in aircraft crash fires. On one occasion, a R.A.F. aircraft crashlanded immediately outside the aerodrome and burst into flames after it had hit a nearby farm-house. The pilot and a farmer were killed. The other crash involved a "Lockheed Neptune" type bomber aircraft of the United States Navy which crashed and caught fire after a faulty landing. The 14 occupants comprising 7 crew members and 7 United States service personnel were all able to escape from the plane before it caught fire. Three of them received minor injuries.
5. The Brigade were called out to 13 fires on ships, most of which were not of a serious nature. On one occasion, assistance was rendered by the Brigade's fire boat to a Chinese type cargo junk which developed a leak whilst on her way to the Colony. It was possible to refloat her by pumping, in order to effect temporary repairs before being towed to a slipway.
6. 67 special service calls were answered by the Brigade, these included landslides, house collapses, drowning and other miscellaneous incidents, such as rescuing trapped persons or animals. In one case at about 4.30 p.m. on 8th September, 1953, the Brigade was called to a house collapse involving two 3-storey tenement buildings under construction at Wuhu Street, Kowloon. The operation proved to be extremely difficult due to the collapse of a large number of reinforced cement concrete blocks with inter-mingled iron rods. Oxy-Acetylene cutting sets and a mobile crane had to be brought into use. The Squatter Re- settlement Division of the Urban Services Department and the Public Works Department rendered valuable assistance in this operation by providing squads of coolies to remove the debris and to assist in freeing those trapped. A total of 12 persons lost their lives and 25 were injured in this incident.
3
7.
FALSE ALARMS
Considerable difficulty is still experienced in appre- hending culprits who originate malicious false alarms, despite the prompt co-operation of the Police. The number of false alarms is not high and over 56% of these calls were made with good intent.
CAUSES OF FIRES
8. Careless handling and negligent use of inflammable liquids were still by far the most common causes of fires. The indiscriminate discarding of cigarette ends and children playing with matches also caused a large number of house fires. Many fires are traceable to the negligent use of electrical appliances and the cause of such fires was generally a short circuit due to unprotected and faulty wiring. It is hoped that surveys of wirings in premises, which are being carried out by the Power Companies will considerably reduce the number of fires from this cause.
CASUALTIES
9. Details of casualties recorded as a result of fires and other causes (i.e. landslides, house collapses etc.) of the number of persons rescued by the Brigade are as follows:
Death Injury Rescued
Rescued but died later
Fires
10
71
3
Other Causes
13
59
19
8
10. No serious injuries were
suffered by Brigade
personnel.
FIRE RISKS
11. The number of calls received from squatter areas indicates that serious fire risks still exist in these areas. How- ever as a result of the constant lectures and talks given by officers of the Brigade and the daily work done by the Squatter
4
Resettlement Squads, the squatters have become more fire- minded and on many occasions an outbreak of fire has been checked in its incipient stage, with the result that the damage has been kept to the minimum.
STAFF
12. The total overall strength of the Brigade was increased during the year by the addition of a number of floating staff to man the new Fire Boat "Alexander Grantham" and by the transfer of ambulance personnel from the Medical Department, on the unification of the Government Ambulance Service under my charge. The approved establishment of the Brigade on 31st March, 1954 was 543 officers and other ranks.
13. The Brigade has finally managed to recruit sufficient candidates from the United Kindom to fill the long outstanding vacancies for expatriate officers. Local recruitment continued to be satisfactory and practically full strength was maintained.
APPLIANCES AND EQUIPMENT
14. All fire appliances and equipment were regularly tested, overhauled and maintained in efficient and good working order by the mechanical staff of the Brigade.
15. The "Onslow" fire engine ordered from Messrs. Dennis Brothers, England, was received and placed in commission. This appliance, although small is fitted with a 500-gallon per minute fire pump and a 30-gallon 1st aid water tank and carries a double extension ladder as well as other ancillary fire fighting equipment. It is especially designed with remarkable manoeuvring ability which makes it ideal for the bends and narrow roads of the Island of Hong Kong.
16. The radio telephone net-work, consisting of 2 fixed main stations, 6 mobile units and 8 pack sets, was put into commission during the year. The system has proved to be of great advantage when working at large fires, squatter area fires etc., where communication by other means is difficult.
5
FIRE BOATS
17. The new sea-going fire boat bearing the name of His Excellency the Governor of Hong Kong, Sir Alexander Grantham, was officially taken over from the builders and placed in commission in July, 1953. The vessel is fitted with 8 monitors (one of which is on a telescopic tower extending to 60 feet high) and 4 pumps with a pumping capacity of 630,000 gallons per hour.
18. No. 1 Fire Boat, a Tanac type vessel, fitted with 1 monitor only and carrying 2 trailer pumps, which was utilized as a fire boat after the liberation of the Colony was sub- sequently returned to the Marine Department after the Fire Boat "Alexander Grantham" was placed in commission.
19. The other 2 fire boats Nos. 2 and 3 were regularly slipped, overhauled and maintained by the Marine Department.
HYDRANTS AND WATER SUPPLY
20. Fire hydrants, both pedestal and ground, were in- spected quarterly and all defects reported to the Water Authority for repair.
21. By the end of the year, new installations and replacements had brought the total number of pedestal and ground hydrants to 556 and 1,178 respectively.
22. Throughout the year the Water Authority provided turncocks at fire stations to allow water valves to be opened during the hours when water supply was restricted. In spite of these arrangements fire fighting operations were handicapped to some extent during the restricted hours.
23. To conserve domestic water supply, efforts were made to utilize other available water for fire fighting such as sea water, nullah water, or water from static water tanks.
6
24. Although the question of provision of personnel for manning the pumping stations of the sea water main system had still to be finalized, the system was completed, temporary arrangements having been made with the Water Authority to operate the pumps.
25. The 74 static tanks were regularly inspected and maintained in good condition.
26. Due to the continuation of water restrictions in the Colony, owners or occupiers of buildings which have private fire service installations fed by street mains, were advised to provide roof storage tanks. These storage tanks are supplied by well water, and usually have a capacity of 2,000 gallons, which ensures that water is always available for dealing with fires at their incipient stages.
INSPECTION BRANCH AND FIRE PREVENTION
27. Officers attached to the Inspection Branch made a total of 6,372 inspections of premises of various descriptions during the year under review. Apart from routine inspections in connexion with the administering of various Ordinances, these inspections included "Goodwill" visits and investigations of complaints of illegal storage of dangerous goods, or of obstruc- tions to staircases or fire escapes etc.
28. Prosecutions of offenders for infringements of the Dangerous Goods Ordinance, the Miscellaneous (Timber Stores) Ordinance and the Celluloid and Cinematograph Film Ordinance were undertaken on 112 occasions and convictions were regis- tered in all cases with fines totalling $16,829.00. In some cases illegally stored dangerous goods were ordered to be confiscated in addition to fines being imposed.
29. The serious fire risk arising from the storage of celluloid and nitro-cellulose firm scrap in the Colony caused must anxiety to the Brigade. Legislation was drafted to augment
7
↓
the existing Ordinance and regulations governing these com- modities with a view to tightening up control over the move- ment and method of storage.
30. Monthly meetings with representatives of the Fire Insurance and Architects Associations were held. The object of these meetings is to cover problems of fire-resisting buildings, installations, fire-fighting equipment and storage of dangerous goods in general. The meetings have been most successful and much has been gained.
AMBULANCE SERVICE
31. For the first three months of the period under review, the fleet of 7 ambulances operated by the Brigade for Emer- gency and Accident cases was called out on 2,585 occasions with a total of 2,557 patients conveyed to hospitals. The mileage covered by the 7 ambulances for this period was 20,244 miles.
32. On 1st July, 1953 the Ambulance Service of the Hong Kong Government was unified under the control of the Chief Officer, Fire Brigade. The fleet of ambulances was increased to 17 "Austin" ambulances of a new type; the previous 7 old models were withdrawn from the Service.
33. The Ambulance Service, which formerly operated from Central Fire Station and Eastern Fire Station in Hong Kong and from Kowloon Fire Station and Terminus Fire Station on the mainland, was extended to Western Fire Station on the Island and from a specially erected station Taipo in the New Territories.
34. Additional staff to operate the augmented service was transferred to the Hong Kong Fire Brigade from the Medical Department. The service now includes emergency calls, private removals and removal calls to and from various hospitals.
35. On 1st November, 1953 a scale of charges for removals was authorized by Government Notification No. 1237 and published in the Hong Kong Government Gazette No. 45 on Friday, 9th October, 1953.
8
NT LIBRARY
MARINE DEPA
36. From the date of the unification of the ance
Service on 1st July, 1953 to 31st March, 1954 there were 7,818 emergency calls involving 8,261 patients, making the annual totals 10,303 and 10,818 respectively, and 15,010 removal calls with 19,735 patients involved. The total mileage for both services was 208,956 for the whole period under review.
37. Emergency calls show an increase of 2,098 calls and 2,303 patients over the period April, 1952 to March, 1953.
A detailed summary of calls received is shown under Annex No. III.
AWARDS
38. Coronation Medals were awarded to the following officers of the Brigade on the Coronation of Her Majesty the Queen.
Chief Officer W. J. Gorman
Divisional Officer WONG Wai Tsoi.
39. The following officer and men of exemplary character having completed 18 or more years of faithful and loyal service were awarded the Colonial Police and Fire Brigades Long Service Medal during the year.
Sub Officer CHAN Chu Wai
Fireman 111 LUI Shau
Fireman 207 CHEUNG Tor.
40. The annual competition drills for the year 1953 were keenly contested by various Station teams with the following results:
(A) MOTOR ESCAPE DRILL-The Fire Insurance Associa-
tion of Hong Kong Challenge Shield.
Winner:-Central A1-Sub Officer CHAN Cho Wing, Fire- man Driver 47, Firemen Nos. 339, 184, 169, 157 and 350. (Time: 1 minute 3 seconds).
9
(B) MOTOR PUMP DRILL-The Chinese Insurance Associa-
tion of Hong Kong Challenge Shield.
Winner:-Central A1-Sub Officer CHAN Cho Wing, Fireman Driver No. 47, Firemen Nos. 339, 184, 169, 157 and 350. (Time: 1 minute 9 seconds).
(C) TRAILER PUMP DRILL-The Hong Kong Chinese
Godowns Association Challenge Cup.
Winner: -Eastern Al--Firemen Nos. 189, 62, 352, and 70.
(Time: 1 minute 8 seconds).
TRAINING
41. Brigade personnel received regular training which included lectures in firemanship in addition to practical drills. Initial training of recruits was undertaken by the Training School at the modernized Kowloon Fire Station where improved facilities are available. Recruits for the Airport Fire Service under the control of the Civil Aviation Department were also trained by the Brigade in the use of various apparatus for combating aircraft fires.
AUXILIARY FIRE SERVICE
42. The authorized strength of the Auxiliary Fire Service is now 793 officers and men, with an actual strength at the end of the year of 713. There were, however, a substantial number of applicants to join the service and the under-strength position was the result of a deliberate policy of weeding out members regarded as inefficient and admitting new members only in relation to training facilities available.
43. Training is now carried out at Central and Eastern Stations in Hong Kong and at Tsim Sha Tsui and Mongkok in
10
.
Kowloon. A regular officer at each station has been appointed to assist the Training Officer. In addition, the Control Staff receive training in the Hong Kong and Kowloon Control Centres.
44. Half-day exercises were carried out in Hong Kong and Kowloon on December 13th and 20th, 1953 respectively when much enthusiasm and a high standard of training were revealed.
45. A joint Auxiliary Fire Service Civil Aid Services Review and Demonstration was held at South China Athletic Association Stadium on 14th March, 1954. The Unit produced an impressive turnout for the Review and its participation in the Demonstration was both efficient and spectacular.
46. The Band made its first official public appearance and performed most creditably.
47. During the Coronation Celebrations the Auxiliary Fire Service was mobilized for the whole day and manned Stations in Hong Kong and Kowloon.
48. The Annual Competition Drills were held at Central Fire Station on 17th December, 1953 with the following results:
(A) TRAILER PUMP (HEAVY UNIT) DRILL-The Hon.
T. N. Chau Challenge Shield.
Winner:
Hong Kong Division "A"-Sub Officer CHOW Wo Hee, Fireman Driver No. 599, Firemen Nos. 512, 619, 620 and 609 (Time: 1 minute 56 seconds).
(B) TRAILER PUMP (LIGHT UNIT) DRILL-The Philip
Cockchin Challenge Shield.
Winner: --Hong Kong Division "A"-Fireman Driver No. 599, NGO Fai, Firemen Nos. 512, 619 and 620 (Time: 1 minute 44 seconds).
11
49. During the year under review the Auxiliary Fire Service was called out to assist in fire-fighting at the following fires:
24th April 1953
25th July 1953
12th September 1953
30th September 1953
2nd November 1953
25th December 1953
16th January 1954
Wor Chai Village, Shek Kip Mei,
Kowloon.
Ho Man Tin New Village, Kowloon.
Shek Kip Mei Village, Kowloon.
Pak Tin Village, Kowloon.
Fuk Chuen Village, Tai Kok Tsui,
Kowloon.
Pak Tin Village, Kowloon,
Squatter Hut Fire at Aplichau.
GENERAL
50. I append hereto the following:
I. Graph showing number of fire calls attended and
estimated monetary losses by fires.
II. Summary of existing Fire Stations and Plant.
III. Summary of Ambulance Calls attended.
IV. Summary of Monthly Inspections.
CONCLUSION
51. In conclusion, I wish to acknowledge my appreciation of the assistance and co-operation rendered to the Brigade by other Departments and for the loyal support of all members of the staff of the Fire Brigade and Auxiliary Fire Service.
W. J. GORMAN, B.E.M., M.I.F.E., A.F.I.C.D., Chief Officer, Fire Brigade.
12
Thousand Dollars
5750
$700-
5650-
FIRE BRIGADE DEPARTMENT, HONG KONG
Number of Fire Calls attended and Estimated Monetary Losses by Fire from 1st April, 1953 to 31st March, 1954.
Calls attended
Monetary losses =
III
350
300
250
ANNEX I
Calls
70
.60
50
200
-40
150
30
100
283
50-
Apr. May June July Aug. Sep. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Mar.
13
20
10
4
14
+
STATION AND PLANT AT 31st MARCH, 1954
ANNEX II
PLANT
HONG KONG FIRE BRIGADE
AUXILIARY FIRE SERVICE
STATION
Motor
Motor
Pumps
Escapes Turntable
(with
Ladders pumps)
Emer-
gency Tenders
Trailer Fire Pumps Boat
Ambu- lance
Motor Trailer
Pumps
Pumps
HONG KONG:
Central
2
2
1
Eastern
2
1
2
4
Western
Shaukiwan
Aberdeen...
King Shan Wharf...
1
3
1
2
2
A.F.S. Training Depot.
KOWLOON AND NEW
TERRITORIES:-
Kowloon
Terminus
1
1
1
1
-
1
4
1
9
Un Long..
Tai Po......
Cheung Chau
Tai O
2
1
1
2
1
Sai Kung
1
Sheung Shui
1
Tsun Wan
1
TOTAL.
6
6
3
3
29
17
20
SUMMARY OF AMBULANCE CALLS
ANNEX III
Number of Calls
Number of Patients
Month
Miles Run
Emer-
Removal Total
gency
Emer-
gency
Removal Total
1953
April
636
636
639
639
5,006
May
820
820
828
828
6,724
June
1,029
1,029
1,090
1,090
8,514
July
931
1,768
2,699
995 2,357 3,352
24,132
August
1,175
1,530
2,705 1,233
2,220
3,453 22,726
September
940
1,574
2,514
983
2,278 3,261
20,730
October
1,034
1,580
2,614
1,056
2,316 3,372
22,343
November
719
1,600 2,319
778
1,962 2,740
19,757
December
727
1,650 2,377
781
2,034 2,815
19,524
1954
January
762
1,847
2,609
804-
2,248 3,052
20,491
February
721
1,626 2,347
770 1,988 2,758
17,773
March
809
1,835 2.644
861
2,332 3,193
21,236
TOTAL..... 10,303
15,010 25,313 10,818
19.735
30,553 208,956
Energency Cases
Removal Cases
No. of Calls
No. of Patients
No. of Calls
No. of Patients
April, 1953 March, 1954
10,303
10,818
15,010
19,735
April, 1952- March, 1953
8,205
8,515
INCREASE: -
2,098
2,303
15,010
19,735
15
MONTHLY SUMMARY OF INSPECTIONS
ANNEX IV
April, 1953
May, 1953
June, 1953
Garages
Cinemas & Theatres....
Hotels & Boarding Houses, Factories & Workshops
Eating Houses &
Restaurants
Timber Yards & Storages.
Buildings
High & Low Flash
Inflammable Liquids
Kerosene Stored in Shops.
Petrol Pumps
Dangerous Goods in
General
Offensive Trades
+
252
126
Fireworks Storages
Schools
Dancing Halls & Academies
Fire Service Installations.
Neon Signs
Printing PressES
Miscellaneous
*2「ཀླ 2 ཨྠསཿ བཿསི།པཱསཎ
4
33
31
4
3
1
19
35
223
12
22
1
6
19
17
20
46
23
49
56
7
7
6
7
4
14
4
19
31
26
17
134
124
56
5
5
3
1
4
2
5
182
115
90
81
69
67
27
3
23
8
13
6
4
65
38
23
22
11
16
36
127
108
114
95
116
92
195
ཀང།༤ འམས ༣༠༠ ུ
جب
!
July, 1953
August, 1953
September, 1953
October, 1953
November, 1953
FUN AND AN December, 1953
TTA
*2*
January, 1954
February, 1954
March, 1954
TOTAL
3
6
1
6
5
37
17
110
59
39
17
375
3
2
3
1
13
24
19
23
27
391
9
12
8
4
85
99
129
43
20
15
713
10
6
51
36
34
55 320
1,321
4
2
5
8
105
17
14
31
245
533
72
45
38
54
172
1,159
2
1
1
1
1
6
I
1
1
3
12
17
14
16
28
19
18
16
10
15
16
24
205
2
6
8
5
12
34
7
45
44
22
22
2
2
14
7
5
15
80
16
57
35
26
32
44
370
I
7
7
7
2
1
30
9
12
13
10
10
9
4
6
7
9
13
111
44
48
41
124
102
78
68
44
42
59
52
82
784
TOTAL
634
582 419
419 | 532
563
557
460
423
487
353
363
999
6,372
16
4: