THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 1983
3
+FIRE SERVICES AMONG BEST IN WORLD+
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HONG KONG HAS ONE OF THE BEST TRAINED, BEST EQUIPPED AND BEST MOTIVATED FIRE SERVICES IN THE WORLD, THE ACTING GOVERNOR, SIR PHILIP HADDON-CAVE, SAID TODAY.
SIR PHILIP WAS SPEAKING DURING HIS HALF-DAY VISIT TO THE FIRE SERVICES TODAY, TO SEE THE VARIOUS FUNCTIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT, AND SOME OF ITS LATEST RESCUE AND FIRE FIGHTING EQUIPMENT AND FACILITIES.
ACCOMPANIED BY THE DIRECTOR OF FIRE SERVICES, MR F.M. WATSON, SIR PHILIP FIRST FLEW BY HELICOPTER TO THE FIRE SERVICES TRAINING SCHOOL AT PAT HEUNG, NEW TERRITORIES WHERE HE WAS MET ON ARRIVAL BY THE COMMANDANT.
SIR PHILIP THEN TOURED THE SCHOOL AND SPOKE WITH RECRUITS UNDER TRAINING.
LATER SIR PHILIP LEFT FOR SHA TIN AND VISITED THE NEW TERRITORIES FIRE COMMAND HEADQUARTERS, SHA TIN FIRE STATION AND AMBULANCE DEPOT AND THE NEW TERRITORIES REGIONAL FIRE PROTECTION OFFICE.
HE THEN RETURNED TO HONG KONG ISLAND WHERE HE MET PERSONNEL OF THE FIRE SERVICES MTR STRIKE FORCE AT HARBOUR ROAD FIRE STATION, AND HEARD ABOUT THE VARIOUS FUNCTIONS AND WORK OF THIS SPECIALISED UNIT. HE ALSO SAW HOW THE STRIKE FORCE MOUNTS A RESCUE OPERATION IN AN MTR TUNNEL.
EXPORT-LED RECOVERY IS UNDERWAY
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ACCORDING TO THE HALF-YEARLY ECONOMIC REPORT 1983 PUBLISHED TODAY BY THE GOVERNMENT, DOMESTIC EXPORTS HAVE BEEN GROWING AT AN INCREASINGLY RAPID RATE SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THIS YEAR, AS THE ECONOMIES OF SEVERAL OF HONG KONG'S MAJOR EXPORT MARKETS CONTINUED TO IMPROVE.
DOMESTIC EXPORTS IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1983 GREW BY ABOUT NINE PER CENT IN REAL TERMS OVER THE SAME PERIOD OF LAST YEAR, INDICATING THAT A RECOVERY OF THE EXPORT SECTOR IS ALREADY UNDERWAY.
THE REPORT, HOWEVER, NOTES THAT DOMESTIC DEMAND WAS STILL WEAK IN THE FIRST HALF OF 1983. WHILE STATISTICS ON RETAINED IMPORTS OF CONSUMER GOODS SUGGEST THAT CONSUMER DEMAND MAY HAVE PICKED UP SLIGHTLY IN THE SECOND QUARTER, RETAINED IMPORTS OF CAPITAL GOODS CONTINUED TO FALL. ALBEIT AT A SLOWER RATE IN THE SECOND QUARTER THAN IN THE FIRST QUARTER.
/THE REPORT