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In 1929, 4,734 British ocean-going steamers and 7,809 foreign ocean-going steamers entered and cleared the harbour. In addition there were 16,509 river steamers and 23,522 foreign trade junks. The total tonnage of vessels entering and clearing was 39,871,149.
The Medical Staff engaged in Port Health duties consists of two European Health Officers and two Chinese Medical Officers.
The work of the department includes:-
(a) Routine inspection of ships.
(b) Quarantine duty.
(c) Duty in connection with emigration.
(d) Vaccination
The laws dealing with the subject of Quarantine and Port Health are contained in Table L of the Hong Kong Port Regulations, the Asiatic Emigration Ordinance and the Vaccination Ordinance.
During the year 6,274 inward bound ocean-going vessels were boarded by the Health Officers. Of these 2,366 were on the British register and 3,908 on the foreign register.
River steamers from Canton, Macao and West River Ports, also junks and small crafts were only visited when cases of sickness or death were reported.
During the year 166 special visits were made to ships for the purpose of examining persons suffering from infectious but non-quarantinable diseases. 100 permits for the landing of corpses for burial were granted and 40 bodies sent to the mortuary for post-mortem examination. Fifteen cases of leprosy were detected amongst Chinese passengers. Thirty-three Chinese lunatics and one European lunatic arrived in the Colony during the year.
Bills of Health numbering 2,058 were issued.
QUARANTINE.
Hong Kong has no quarantine station for ships' passengers or crews. When segregation is necessary it is carried out on board ship at the quarantine anchorage. A limited number of infectious cases can be accommodated at the Government Infectious Diseases Hospital at Kennedy Town but there is little room for contacts.
During the year 7 ships were detained in quarantine; four of these were detained on account of smallpox, in one the cause was cholera, one was cholera suspicious, and one for cerebro-spinal fever.
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