Fire_Brigade_1959-1960 — Page 9

FIRE AND OTHER OCCURRENCES

DURING the year under review a total of 1,841 calls were received and responded to by the Fire Brigade, as against 1,367 for the preceding year. Classifications of these calls were:

Fires:

Buildings.. Chimneys

Electrical

Motor Vehicles

Grass & shrubbery

Ships

་ ་ ་

Aircraft

Squatter areas

Small fires

False Alarms:

With good intent Malicious

147

54

225

45

314

35

1

57

609

1.487

68

48

116

Special Services:

Emergency Calls-

Landslides,

House

Collapse, Drowning,

Floods, etc.

238

238

Total

1,841

The estimated monetary loss by fires was $5,440,906.

2. The number of serious fires has not been as great as in previous years. Brief details of the more notable fires are appended:

26th May, 1959-Fire at 134, BONHAM STRAND EAST, HONG KONG

At 04.15 hours on 26th May, 1959, a call was received to a fire at the above mentioned address, a 3-storey tenement building of wooden internal construction, occupied as dwellings and Chinese medicine shop. The fire was thought to have been caused by defective electric wiring which ignited combustible materials. The fire was extinguished at 04.55 hours by the Fire Brigade with 4 jets from 2 motor pumps pumping from hydrants, and one jet from a Turntable Ladder appliance. The rear part of the top floor and roof, with the contents of the house, were severely

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