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Public Order
safety policies and measures. The department has 9,266 uniformed and 670 civilian members and has well-trained personnel, advanced communications systems, and modern equipment and appliances.
Fire-fighting and Rescue
Of the 37,638 fire calls received in 2012, 13 were classified as major fires of No 3 alarm and above. Careless handling of lighted items or accidents in the process of cooking were the major cause of fires, accounting for 1,697 cases. Careless handling or disposal of lighted materials, such as cigarette ends, matches and candles caused 1,056 fires, while electrical faults caused 770 fires. Unwanted alarms, triggered mainly by faulty automatic alarm systems, contributed to about 76 per cent of the total number of fire calls.
The department also provides a wide range of rescue services for incidents such as traffic accidents, shipwrecks, people trapped in elevators or locked in rooms, gas leakages, house collapses, flooding, landslides, industrial accidents and attempts by people to jump from heights. The department handled 30,191 such special service calls in 2012.
Ambulance Services
The Ambulance Command handled 727,300 calls in 2012, an average of 1,987 calls per day.
The department's ambulance fleet is fully equipped and manned by paramedics. All emergency ambulances and emergency medical assistant motorcycles are equipped with automated defibrillators and selected drugs for illness such as diabetes, shock, heart attack, shortness of breath and drug overdose. Since May 2011, the department has provided simple Post Dispatch Advice (PDA) to callers in relation to three easily identified injuries (bleeding, bone fractures/ dislocation to limbs, and burns) after dispatching the ambulance to the scene. In June 2012, the PDA service was extended to include convulsion and heat exposure. The PDA includes simple first-aid and time-saving advice to facilitate the provision of prompt medical assistance to the patients.
The department continues to train front-line firemen to become first responders to provide basic life-saving support to casualties and patients while ambulance crews are on their way to the scene. In 2012, first responders attended to 46,972 calls.
Communications
The Fire Services Communications Centre, manned round-the-clock, is responsible for mobilising all fire-fighting and ambulance resources to provide timely fire and ambulance services to the community. The centre also receives complaints about fire hazards and dangerous goods and acts as an emergency co-ordinator for other government departments and public utilities during large-scale emergencies or major calamities. The centre is equipped with the Third Generation Mobilising System to mobilise fire and ambulance resources more efficiently.
In February 2012, the department's new Digital Trunked Radio System commenced full operation, ensuring effective and efficient radio communication at scenes of incidents.
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