8
During the autuma, large oil drums were placed at convenient intervals with a view to inducing householders to concentrate the nuisance in one place rather than indulging, in indiscriminate dumping. This was not an invariable success owing to the tendency of beggars to overturn the drums and pick over the contents.
Street, orderly handcarts were imported to assist in street cleansing.
Covered motor-tipping lorries which should arrive in adequate numbers in 1947, should result in a decided improvement in this unsatisfactory service. Emergency measures on a large scale must be taken, however, if the accumulation of refuse and bullding debris already referred to are to be satisfactorily dealt with.
With a view to reducing the danger from fly—and mosquito breeding in the deposits of refuse, a special squad was organised to spray these collections with crude oil, generously supplied by the Navy, and with D.D.T. At the same time, the Naval Authorities carried out aerial spraying of the urban area from time to time.
As an interim measure pending the organisation of ground teams, there can be no doubt as to the value of aerial spraying, as clearly shown by the almost complete absence of flies and mosquitos.
About 214 tune of house and trade refuse are collected in Hong Kong daily, the figure for Kowloon being 155 tons. The greater part is conveyed in refuse barges to Kun Tong Dump on the Kowloon Peninsula.
Foj Winter axpply.
Apart from actual war damage, the lack of maintenance of all portions of the water supply system from catchment areas, low level reservoirs, pumping stations, filler beda, chlorination plants, mains and service pipes, during the Japanese occupa- tion, threw a particularly heavy burden upon the Water Authority in 1946. The situation was aggravated by shortage of staff and difficulties in obtaining materials.
Numerous llegat connexions to polluted nullah water made it even more necessary to maintain a close watch. Despite this, however, not only was a very satisfactory standard attained in most parts of the system, but it became possible towards the end of the year to raise the level of purity to absence of coliform organisms in 100 ml. Particulars of bacteriological tests are given in Appendix A. (1) page 7 and Appendix A. (2) page 3. Frequent chemical tests were, also, carried out.
The need for a covered service reservoir at Albany Road, Victoria, and a new filtration plant at Stubbs Road which was recognised before the war still remains to be filled.
Investigations were renewed in regard to impounding water in the Tai Lam Chuen Valley near eleven mile beach on the Kowloon-Castle Peak Road in the Leased Territories in view of the heavy demand made on the existing sources.
The total consumption of piped water used for 1946 (December) amounted to 24.2 million gallons per day in spite of the fact that for some considerable time previously water had been cut off from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. daily,
The water supplies for Cheung Chau, Tai O and many of the larger villages in the Lensed Territories are inadequate in quantity and inferior in quality and it is hoped that funds, staff and materials will be available in 1947 to enable them to be improved.
(2) Markets, hawkera and alonphier keuses.
A curious anomaly extated for the major part of 1946 in that many of the public markets were practically empty, whereas streets and lanes in the neighbourbood were thronged with unlicensed hawkers of all kinds of wares and foodstuffs, including mext, fish, vegetables, firewood, and so on. Many of the stall holders and shop- keepers subsidised these hawkers to try to ensure that their commodities were sold, a vicious circle being produced thereby.
Action by the Police and health authorities to clear the streets of obstruction and to enable them to be cleansed of debris of decomposing vegetables and refuse led to disturbances. However, by adopting a firm policy, it became possible by the end of the year to persuade many hundreds of food hawkers to take up stances in the markets and to leave some, at least, of the main roads of Victoria and Kowloon free from this dangerous encumbrance. Much remains to be done, and one relatively simple solution of the problem would be to clear some of the devastated areas and to provide cement standings, without roof in the first instance, on which street hawkers could be arranged in orderly lines. permitting of sweeping and washing down from time to time.
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In September, 1946, it was estimated by the Urban Counell Authorities that there were about 16,000 licensed hawkers and 60,000 unlicensed hawkers.
The public slaughter houses at Kennedy Town on the Island and at Ma Tau Kok on the Kowloon Peninsula continued to function under the direct supervision of the colonial voterinary surgeon. The scheme for constructing a modern slaughter house at Glo Drinkers Bay in the Leased Territories still remains one of the needs of the Colony. Slaughtering in the Leased, Territories is carried on under primitive conditions and without any supervision.
(2) Housing.
5
About a fifth of the dwellings of the working-clasa Chinese were damaged or destroyed during the war and nearly two-thirds of the upper class Western type of houses met with a like fate, though looting rather than bomb or shell was the main factor responsible.
Housing shortage for workers and the better-of became progressively worSE during 1946 owing to the large numbers who returned to Hong Kong and to the immigrants from China fleeing from internal disturbance and near-famine conditious.
In the course of a census carried out by the health Inspectorate in August nearly 15,000 homeless persons were enumerated. Many of these were sleeping on the street pavements, but several thousand existed in dangerous, partially demolished, premises and in unauthorised hovels constructed of rags, Hattened tini and bits of wood on open spaces and on rubble-covered bomb sites.
Time after time, these conditions gave rise to foci of infection of cholera and smallpox since they did not possess even the pretence of sanitary facilities. Over- crowding in the tenements in such areas amounted to nearly two-thirds of the surrounding premises; and it is well to remember that a room or cubicle is not deemed fa be overcrowded if the inmates "enjoy" a floor space of 85 square feet or over.
Apart from the enacting of legislation requiring owners of dangerous, war damaged buildings to demolish them or render them safe and to fence such properties, and the removal of 350 of the worst amongal dangerous and unauthorised kovela, no real remedy was evolved up to the end of the year.
Schemes were recommended to Government for the reintroduction, as a tem- porary measure, of the system in vogue before the Pacific War by which settlementa were established on the outskirts of Wanchai on the Island and Kowloon City for "squatters" where a hygienic type of hut could be erected by the individual on a definite alignment with the necessary fire breaks, communal water supply, sanitary structures, and the like, Approaches were made to non-government bodies with a view to ascertaining whether funda would be forthcoming for major housing schemes on the lines of the "neighbourhood unit, expecially for the working classes. Hous- ing, slum clearance and town planning can be regarded as the most important public health problem awaiting solution In post-war Hong Koog.
(i) School Hygiene.
During the year 10,696 pupils of fifty-five schools were physically examined by the school health officers. These schools may be classified under the following headings:--
A.
B.
Government schools for European children, Government schools.
C.
Subsidized vernacular schools,
D.
Non-subsidized vernacular schools,
The results of physical examinations of these children are tabulated at Appendix C. (1).
The main defects among European children included adenitis, conjunctivitis and dental caries. Among scholars attending other types of schools, dental cartes. anaemia, conjunctivitis, visual defects, enlarged tonsils and adenitis were the more common conditions. Malnutrition, including avitaminosis, was noted in 168 instances and pediculosis in thirty-two only out of a total of 9,979 different defects discovered.
Treatment centres for defects found on routine examination were establisbod in the second half of the year at Harcourt Health Centre. Kowloon Hospital Out- patient Department, the Ellis Kadoorie School and at the Nethersole Hospital (uphthalmological enses.). Attendances numbered 9.767.