XN000022-1994-08-04 — Page 4

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THURSDAY, AUGUST 4, 1994

THE

THEN WANT

THE

ALL

THIS

MRS CHAN: I'VE ALREADY SAID THAT THE FIRST THING IS TO ESTABLISH FACTS. WE'VE GOT TO ESTABLISH WHAT CAUSED THE COLLAPSE. WE CAN DETERMINE WHAT FURTHER ACTION THE GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO TAKE. I ALSO TO MAKE A POINT ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT'S REACTION FOLLOWING COLLAPSE OF THE SLOPE AT KWUN LUNG LAU. I WANT TO POINT OUT THAT GOVERNMENT DEPARTMENTS, IN FACT, REACTED EXTREMELY QUICKLY ΤΟ EMERGENCY. OUR EMERGENCY SERVICES AND THE FIRE SERVICES WERE ON THE SCENE WITHIN THREE MINUTES AND WITHIN TWENTY MINUTES, WE SET UP A COMMAND POST. WE EVACUATED ABOUT 2 500 PEOPLE REALLY WITHIN A VERY, VERY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME AND WE HAD SOMETHING ABOUT 300 STAFF ON THE GROUND TO COPE WITH THE VARIOUS EMERGENCIES. SO, I THINK THAT WE NEED TO BEAR THIS IN MIND BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE HAS BEEN SOME CRITICISM ABOUT THE GOVERNMENT'S REACTION. ON THE STRAIGHT REACTION SIDE, I DON'T THINK THAT THERE IS ANYTHING, IN PARTICULAR, TO CRITICISE, INDEED, EVERYTHING TO COMMEND THE STAFF. BUT, OF COURSE, EVERY TIME AN INCIDENT LIKE THIS HAPPENS, THERE IS ALWAYS SOMETHING TO BE LEARNT. I'VE ALREADY MADE IT QUITE CLEAR ON PREVIOUS OCCASIONS THAT WE'LL SEE WHAT LESSONS CAN BE LEARNT FROM THIS INCIDENT. IN PARTICULAR, WE NEED TO SEE WHETHER WE CAN PROVIDE CLEARER GUIDANCE то EMPLOYEES WHEN WE HOIST THE BLACK RAINSTORM WARNING. BUT WE WILL BE CONDUCTING THIS INTERNAL REVIEW. INDEED, WE ARE CONDUCTING THIS INTERNAL REVIEW AT THE MOMENT.

QUESTION: ARE YOU PREPARED TO ACCEPT DR MORGENSTERN'S FINDINGS EVEN IF IT IS CRITICAL OF THE GOVERNMENT?

MRS CHAN: OF

COURSE, I'VE SAID THAT WE WILL PUBLISH IN FULL THE FINDINGS TO THE EXTENT THAT DR MORGENSTERN IS AN EXPERT. OF COURSE, IF WE

DO NOT ACCEPT THE FINDINGS, WE WILL HAVE TO HAVE SOME VERY GOOD REASONS. I DO NOT ANTICIPATE THAT WE WILL HAVE DIFFICULTY ACCEPTING THE FINDINGS AND IN THE LIGHT OF THOSE FINDINGS, WE CAN THEN DETERMINE WHAT FURTHER ACTION THE GOVERNMENT NEEDS TO TAKE.

QUESTION: SHOULD THERE BE ANY HUMAN

SUGGESTED BY DR MORGENSTERN.

WILL YOU FIND THE ONE RESPONSIBLE FOR THEM?

COMPLETED

THE

MRS CHAN: I THINK WE WILL WAIT FOR THE INVESTIGATION TO BE FIRST AND THEN, I PROMISE YOU, WE WILL FOLLOW UP THE FINDINGS OF INVESTIGATION VERY CONSCIENTIOUSLY.

AND

0

ACTING GOVERNOR VISITS AFD

* * *

THE ACTING GOVERNOR, MRS ANSON CHAN, VISITED FISHERIES DEPARTMENT (AFD) AND ONE OF ITS MODERN MARKETS THIS (THURSDAY AFTERNOON,

MRS CHAN WAS

AT THE AFD'S HEADQUARTERS, DEPARTMENT'S WORK BY THE DIRECTOR, DR LAWRENCE DIRECTORATE AND SENIOR OFFICERS.

THE AGRICULTURE

WHOLESALE FOOD

BRIEFED ON THE LEE, AND OTHER

THE ACCREDITED

AS

MRS CHAN WAS UPDATED, AMONG OTHER THINGS, ON FARM SCHEME, ARTIFICIAL REEF DEPLOYMENT, MARINE PARKS AND RESERVES WELL AS CONSERVATION WORK BEING PURSUED BY THE DEPARTMENT.

/DURING HER