Storage of radioactive materials and fire precautions
53. The Board was consulted by the Chief Officer, Fire Brigade, on the precautions to be taken in fire-fighting operations where radio-active materials were involved and on the Board's advice a Fire Brigade Order was compiled and issued.
54. The Board also gave attention to the storage of radio-active materials and advised on the proper precautionary measures both for the storage of goods and the protection of personnel.
II. PUBLIC HEALTH
GENERAL COMMENTS
55. Despite the very large movements of people in and out of Hong Kong each year there has continued to be a remarkable freedom from major epidemics. Again there was no case of smallpox, cholera, typhus, plague or relapsing fever. Influenza remained at a low level of incidence but diphtheria and typhoid continued to levy an unnecessarily high toll of morbidity and mortality. The incidence of diphtheria rose by 34% over the previous year but the number of deaths was smaller than in 1958. There was no case of human or animal rabies for the fourth year in succession.
VITAL STATISTICS
56. Registration of all deaths and live births occurring in the Colony is compulsory under the Births and Deaths Registration Ordinance. Still births are not registrable but the numbers received by comocteries for burial are recorded. Table 1 shows the annual returns for births and deaths during the period 1950-59.
57. For the first time since the war, there was a fall in both the birth rate and in the total number of live births registered. The net natural increase in the population during the year was 84,347 which is 1,723 less than for 1958. Without accurate census data, the low crude death rate has little significance but could be said to reflect the youth of the population, one third of which is estimated to be under fifteen years of age; from such survey data as are available it seems evident that there is a preponderance of males in the young adult age groups.
58. Table 2 shows the recent trends in infantile and maternal mortality. The reduction of both the infantile and the maternal mortality rates by over 50% in a period of 10 years has been achieved in spite of the rapidly increasing number of births.
TABLE 2
MATERNAL AND INFANT MORTALITY
Neo-natal mortality rate (per 1,000 live
Maternal Mortality
Infantile Mortality
Year
rate (per 1,000
Rate (per 1,0GO
Tive births)
biraha)
total births)
1950
99.6
30.0
1.70
1951
91.8
31.3
1.59
1952
77.1
26.3
1.14
1953
73.6
25.8
0.97
1954
72.4
14,5
1.34
1955
66.4
23.1
1.16
1936
60.9
24.2
10.90
1957
JAN
55.6
23.8
1.06
1958
54.3
23.4
0.85
1959
48.3
- י
21.3
0.73
TABLE !
BIRTHS AND DEATHS 1950/59
Cruse Live
Estimated
Tostad Elve
Both Rare
Year
Aftal-Year
ка
Popularlon
(per 1,000 populational
Stat Make Seconda
Tara Marka
Crode Death Race (per 1,00
1950
1,265,000
60,600
1951
2.013.000
26.6 66,500 34.0
1.343 18,465
8.2
1.180 20,580
10.2
1952
2,250,000
71.976 32.0
1.157
19,459
8.6
1953
3,250,000
75,544 33.6
1.158
18.300
8.1
1954
2,277.000
1953
2,340,000
83,317 90,511 38.7
36.6
1,341
19,281
8.5
1.250
19,080 8.2
1956
2,440,000
96,746 39.7
968 19,295
7.9
1957
2.583,000
97.834 37.9
1.245 19,365
7.5
1958
2.748.000
106,624
38.8
1.297
20,554
1.5
1959
2.857.000
104,597
36.6
1.393
20.250
7:
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$9. Table 3 shows a comparison of the main causes of infantile mortality for 1950 and 1959. It will be seen that there have been marked reductions in the mortality from infectious and other febrile conditions. although much still remains to be done in the control of broncho- pneumonia and gastroenteritis. The neonatal mortality rate has declined but by no means to the same extent, an experience shared by many other countries; the epidemiological implications of this in Hong Kong have yet to be studied.
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