XN000022-1995-12-15 — Page 15

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In less than half a year since its inception, funds have been approved for three projects, all of which involve the participation of research institutes in China, and one of them is a research institute of CAS.

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15 people receive bravery award

Fifteen people were today (Friday) commended by the Director of Marine, Mr Ian Dale, for their brave acts of saving lives of the others from the sea.

Among the 15 recipients of the 1995 Director of Marine's Commendation for Bravery is a 65-year-old employee of China Motor Bus Company, Mr Yuen Yan-ho.

Mr Yuen together with Police Inspector Lo Kwan-tung and Police Constables Chan Chi-ming and Liang Wai-ching, rescued a 60-year-old woman from the sea off North Point Ferry Pier on September 14, 1994,

Mr Yuen, who was working in the bus conductors' office at North Point Ferry Pier, saw the incident. He took a ladder from his office, tied it to a railing and climbed down into the sea in an attempt to rescue the drowning woman.

He managed to grasp the woman with one hand and held onto the ladder with the other hand. Despite the motion of the woman in the rough sea and the onset of fatigue, he held on to her until the arrival of a team of policemen.

On arrival at the scene, Inspector Lo, Constables Chan and Liang, jumped into the sea and together with Mr Yuen, the four kept the woman afloat in rough sea under a strong monsoon until firemen arrived.

The heroic acts of the four together with the 11 others saved a total of 43 lives from the sea.

Twenty-two crew members of a Thai vessel which met her fate and sank about 235 nautical miles south of Hong Kong on November 13, 1995 were saved because of the action taken by a Hong Kong seaman, Captain Wong Chong-lin.