HKG-CAR1904-1919 — Page 133

Hong Kong Annual Administration Reports, 1841-1941

COLONIAL REPORTS-ANNUAL.

There were 2,498 deaths from respiratory diseases amongst the Chinese, 748 of which were due to phthisis, a percentage of 83 of the total deaths amongst that community.

Beri-beri caused 736 deaths—as against 562 in 1907—a very high figure.

The deaths from malaria were 499 as against 579 in 1907, and 448 in 1906. The average number of deaths from this disease has fallen from 480 in the quinquennium 1899 to 1903 to 422 in the quinquennium 1904-1908. Military returns of admissions to hospital for malaria show an increase in the incidence of this disease, as compared with the year 1907. There were 515 admissions in 1908, being a ratio per thousand of the garrison of 256, against 287 in 1907 (196 per thousand).

Changes were made during the year in the administration of the Sanitary Department by an Amending Public Health and Buildings Ordinance (No. 14 of 1908) whereby the Principal Civil Medical Officer ceased to be the Administrative Head of the Department and President of the Board, these duties being transferred to a cadet officer whose whole time is given to the work. At the same time the duty of dealing with all private drainage works and with structural defects of a sanitary nature, such as deficient window area, defective ground surfaces, obstructed open spaces, &c., was transferred to certain engineers of the Public Works Department who, as the Building Authority, are now entirely responsible for dealing with all structural defects on private premises.

This amending Ordinance also reduced somewhat the stringency of the law in regard to the erection of cubicles in Chinese tenement houses and reduced the required floor space per head from 50 square feet to 30 square feet in all such premises as do not contain cubicles. The Ordinance also made further provision for dealing with blocks of insanitary property (s. 154a) and introduced the principle of an improvement rate for such cases.

The transfer of duties to the Building Authority has greatly lessened the work of the Sanitary Department, and as a consequence it has been possible to reduce the Sanitary Staff—one Surveyor and one Overseer of Drainage have been transferred to the Public Works Department and the number of Sanitary Inspectors has been materially reduced, while further reductions are contemplated as vacancies arise.

As a result of the final report of the Indian Plague Commission, issued in 1908, it has been possible to effect a very considerable economy in the matter of the disinfection of plague houses, a cheap pulicide only being now in use whereas formerly both pulicide and disinfectants were employed.

The average monthly temperature throughout the year was 71.8° F., as compared with 72.2° F. in 1907 and 72.0 F. during the ten preceding years. The mean maximum monthly temperature was attained in August, when it reached 87.3° F., and the mean minimum monthly temperature was recorded in February, when it was 54.9° F. The highest recorded temperature was...