Kowloon, at 5 p.m. on 6th March, 1963. The loss to the occupants was estimated at $15,000.
Fuk Tsun Street, Kowloon
98. Unusual operations developed following a fire which broke out at 7.25 a.m. on 19th March, 1963, on the 1st floor of a 5-storey R.C.C. tenement building in Fuk Tsun Street, Kowloon. The fire was caused when an occupant using the toilet struck a match, sustaining minor injuries in a somewhat sensitive part of his anatomy. The fire was quickly extinguished, and upon investigation as to the cause, an officer from the Fire Prevention Bureau reported the presence of heavy con- centrations of petroleum gases. Further investigations (following the evacuation of the premises) revealed that the liquid in the flushing tanks on the roof was almost neat petroleum. As a result, the whole flushing system for this block contained highly inflammable liquids and gases. On the ground floor, where a bakery was operating at full production with high temperatures from the ovens, some 30-40 gallons of liquid found in the drains nearby was heavily contaminated with petroleum. The Service drained all flushing systems in the neighbour- hood and gave orders for further buildings to be evacuated, whilst the source of the petroleum was being traced. Continuing investigations in the buildings, sewers and drains made it obvious that a highly dangerous situation existed over a wide area. The total resources of Kowloon District and the Fire Prevention Bureau was mobilized on the spot together with officers from the Government Chemist, Water Authority Drainage Office and the Urban Services Department. Investi- gations by the Fire Prevention Bureau revealed a possible source (later confirmed) of the petroleum as a 1,000 gallons underground tank of solvent in a rubber factory nearby. The supplying company drained and sealed this tank at once. Wells in the area were also contaminated and steps taken to free them of gas by the Urban Services Department and Fire Service personnel. By 5 p.m. in the evening, some 10 hours after the original fire, the area was declared gas free, and some 1,200 people re-occupied their homes and places of work. Departmental co-operation in this joint operation was excellent. This small fire coupled with the persistent efforts of the officers of the Fire Prevention Bureau to ascertain the causes of all fires was without doubt responsible for setting into motion action by Government Departments which prevented what could have been the greatest disaster by explosion and fire in the Colony since the war.
22