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Fire safety advice for grave-sweepers
The Agriculture and Fisheries Department today (Friday) urged the public to take extra care in handling fire when they visit their ancestral graves in the countryside during the Ching Ming festival period.
The department's Country Park Protection Officer, Mr Edmond Lam pointed out that most of the countryside fires were caused by human negligence and could have been prevented if people observed a few simple rules.
These rules include:
Use hand or hand tools to clear grasses or weeds adjacent to the graves instead of using fire;
Burn worshipping items like candles, joss sticks and "paper money" in metal containers;
Do not leave lighted worshipping items unattended; and
Make sure all burning items are extinguished before leaving grave sites.
Mr Lam said the department would provide metal containers at strategic locations inside country park areas for their use.
He also reminded picnickers to light fires only at designated barbecue sites.
Illegal lighting of fires inside country parks may lead to a maximum fine of $5,000 and one year's imprisonment, he added.
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