FRIDAY, JUNE 12, 1981
9
FIRE OFFICER SPENT ALL HIS YEARS ON SHIPS
****
A FIRE OFFICER WHOSE ENTIRE CAREER HAS BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH SHIPS RETIRED TODAY AFTER 20 YEARS SERVICE.
TO MARK HIS RETIREMENT, THE DIRECTOR OF FIRE SERVICES, MR FREDERICK WATSON, PRESENTED DIVISIONAL OFFICER JO TAI-CHANG, WITH A CAMERA AND A PLAQUE.
MR WATSON PRAISED +JOE+ FOR HIS DEDICATED SERVICE TO THE DEPARTMENT.
+HE HAS PROVED HIMSELF TO BE AN OUTSTANDING OFFICER DURING HIS CAREER AS A FIRE OFF ICER AND WE SHALL ALL MISS HIM,+ MR WATSON SAID.
WHILE
AT 57, DIVISIONAL OFFICER JO HAS HAD A COLOURFUL CAREER. IN HIS TWENTIES, HE SERVED IN THE CHINESE NAVY, STATIONED MOSTLY IN TSINGTAO AND SHANGHAI.
IN 1945, HE WAS SENT TO ENGLAND WHERE HE SPENT THREE YEARS STUDYING RADAR TECHNIQUES, BEFORE RETURNING TO CHINA.
HE CAME TO HONG KONG IN 1949 AND SERVED FOR 12 YEARS AS AN OFFICER ON MERCHANT VESSELS.
IN 1961 HE JOINED THE FIRE SERVICES DEPARTMENT AS A STATION OFFICER.
AS A FIRE OFFICER WITH THE DEPARTMENT, JOE SPENT HIS CAREER ON FIRE FIGHTING VESSELS.
HE WAS AWARDED THE COLONIAL POLICE MEDAL FOR MERITORIOUS SERVICE IN 1976 AND THE COLONIAL FIRE BRIGADE LONG SERVICE MEDAL
IN 1979.
HE WAS PROMOTED TO THE ASSISTANT DIVISIONAL OFFICER IN 1970 AND TO HIS PRESENT RANK TWO YEARS LATER.
/10
Page 10Page 11