Fire_Services_1966-1967 — Page 24

92. The provision and testing of fire equipment in Government buildings continues to increase and has necessitated an increase of staff and the exclusive use of two light vehicles in this section.

Buildings

93. In keeping with technical advancements and rising value of property, fire defence has of need, become more sophisticated. More developers are turning to automatic detection and attack systems in their projects. These systems are principally heat or smoke detection units sometimes coupled with inert gas extinguishing media for the protection of hazardous industries, computers or public buildings. During the past year some Government establishments have been fitted with smoke detection and heat sensitive units which will indicate a fire situation within minutes of its origin. It is anticipated that all such systems will ultimately be connected directly to the nearest Fire Station so as to speed the relay of a fire call from its point of origin to the Fire Service. This facility will be accorded when a suitable termination unit has been selected and enquiries at present in hand completed.

Dangerous Goods

94. Duties in connexion with this sphere of activity have shown a marked degree of increased co-operation from licensees and developers resulting in a better understanding of the problems involved by all concerned.

95. The problem of storage of dangerous goods from seizures has been somewhat eased on Hong Kong Island as a result of the provision of a number of dangerous goods stores in the Pok Fu Lam area. The problem in Kowloon, however, is becoming more acute and all attempts to secure suitable storage have to date been unsuccessful.

Factories & Industrial Undertakings

96. Co-operation between the Labour Department and the Bureau remains excellent. The greatest problem in this field has in the past been the necessity to tolerate the presence of industrial concerns in premises not originally designed for industrial purposes. It is gratifying to record that the justification for such tolerance seems to be drawing to a close. More factory space is becoming available for rent and concomitant to this is the decrease in the number of industrial concerns being registered provisionally or otherwise in other than industrial buildings.

18