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Wednesday, March 6, 1974

NEW AMBULANCE DEPOT OPENED

The Ambulance Command has come a long way since its establishment

as a small division in 1960, Mr. Li Fook-kom, Secretary for Social Services,

said today when he officially opened a new ambulance depot at Yau Ma Tei.

Mr. Li said the division had been re-organised, strengthened and

gradually expanded into a strong Command with its own administrative

organisation and a fleet of 67 ambulances to meet the emergency requirements

of the population.

He went on: "But the demands for this service by the growing

population have increased rapidly and, in a recent review of the Aribulance

Service, the government also approved an additional 19 ambulances for the

Command. This considerable increase is not surprising if one takes account

of the fact that the Ambulance Service is answering an average of about

300 calls a day."

At the same time, Mr. Li said, it is the government's intention to

ensure a well-equipped ambulance service with well trained officers who are

able to cope with all manner of unforeseen circumstances.

"With the increasing public awareness of the ambulance service, the

expanding industrialisation, higher population and traffic densities, the

domand for a bigger and better service will continue to grow.

But I am

confident that, with the dedicated spirit of the Ambulance Command and the

combined efforts of all concerned, we will continue to have an Ambulance

Service we can be proud of."

tu

/Present at

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