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All our life-guards must possess the Bronze Medallion Certificate of the Royal Life Saving Society, a valid first-aid certificate and have passed the departmental skill test. They also attend refresher courses on First-Aid and Life-saving to keep abreast with the latest techniques. The majority of our serving life-guards are in possession of the Award of Merit qualification which is higher than the Bronze Medallion Certificate.
When our swimming pools are hired out for training purposes, no life-guards are provided as the responsibility of seeing to the safety and conduct of all the trainees rests with the instructors engaged by the organizers. However, life-guards are provided for competitive events including swimming galas organized by schools and other organizations.
In respect of competitive events, hirers are permitted to provide their own additional life-guards and to make arrangements with the pool management as to the optimum deployment of our life-guards. If no special arrangements are made, our life-guards will be present throughout the course of the event to ensure the safe conduct of the proceedings.
The investigation into the fatal accident on 10 October 1984 at Victoria Park Swimming Pool is being taken up by the Police and a post-mortem report is being submitted to the Coroner. Before a decision is taken whether to hold an inquest into the cause of death, it would not be appropriate to make any public comments in this respect.
The Department has nevertheless reviewed the safety measures provided at Urban Council swimming pools in the wake of this accident and has come to the conclusion that the existing safety facilities provided are adequate.
In fact, the Department regularly reviews the life-saving facilities provided at Urban Council swimming pools (and beaches) and the life-saving techniques of the life-guards together with improvement in life-saving technology introduced by the Royal Hong Kong Life Saving Society.
MR. L. H. KWAN (in Cantonese):—Mr. Chairman, in the second point of the answer by Mr. Lo, he mentioned that there are five parts of the Victoria Swimming Pool Complex, including a main pool, a diving pool, a training pool, a children's pool and a paddling pool, and the life-guards are deployed in two shifts. Now are seven life-guards enough for each single shift? Another one is the first shift is from 6.45 a.m. to 3.15 p.m. and the other from 1.15 p.m. to 10.15 p.m., so for the first shift there are 8½ hours and the second shift are 9 hours, are the working hours too long? If the life-guards want to rest, is it possible to get a replacement temporarily?
MR. KENNETH LO (in English):—Mr. Chairman, the life-guards are deployed seven per shift and the working hours are stated in my answer and the Department had gone into the question and have concluded that these are adequate.
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MR. L. H. KWAN (in Cantonese):—Mr. Chairman, I would still like to know, given that there are fourteen life-guards, how are they deployed and how many are looking after the main pool and so on? Is there any supervision of which pool they look after?
MR. KENNETH LO (in English): Mr. Chairman, they are certainly not allowed to wander about at their own free will, but are directed to certain pools. But I do not have the figures at the moment as to how many would be at each particular pool.
MR. HOWARD YOUNG (in English):—Mr. Chairman, can Mr. Lo confirm that although the working hours are from 6.45 a.m. to 3.15 p.m. and 1.15 p.m. to 10.15 p.m., the sessions that start from 7.00 a.m. to 10.00 p.m., in fact, are broken down into various sessions with breaks in between, therefore, it means that the guards are not necessarily working nine hours.
MR. KENNETH LO (in English):—That is correct, Mr. Chairman.
MR. JOSEPH CHAN (in Cantonese):—Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It is said in paragraph 5 of the reply of Mr. Lo that during training sessions, no life-guards will be supplied, now this policy is questionable, why is it not necessary to have life-guards on duty during training sessions? Why should safety be solely the responsibility of the coaches themselves, so do you want to see whether there are any improvements necessary?
MR. KENNETH LO (in English):—Mr. Chairman, there is a difference between the position when a pool is hired out for a training purpose or used for recreational swimming. When it is used for recreational swimming, people just go in and swim by themselves, they may be good swimmers or very poor swimmers or even non-swimmers, therefore, life-guards are very necessary for this. However, when hired out for training purposes, there are qualified trainers and coaches, they are in charge of a particular group and, therefore, it would be appropriate for them to be responsible for the safety and conduct of the people being trained. Of course, the department will go into the question whether even in such circumstances, life-guards will also be provided, this is certainly a possibility.
4. DR. DENNY M. H. HUANG asked the following question (in Cantonese):— May I have a detailed report on the case of a youth who fell fatally from the Signal Hill which is, I understand, under Urban Council management? Have any measures been taken to prevent a similar incident from happening again?
MR. KENNETH T. C. LO, CHAIRMAN OF THE RECREATION SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):—This question asks for a detailed report on the case of a youth who was fatally injured in a fall from the Signal Hill Garden and the measures taken to prevent a similar incident from happening again.
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Page 129 of 233
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HONG KONG URBAN COUNCIL
All our life-guards must possess the Bronze Medallion Certificate of the Royal Life Saving Society, a valid first-aid certificate and have passed the departmental skill test. They also attend refresher courses on First-Aid and Life-saving to keep abreast with the latest techniques. The majority of our serving life-guards are in possession of the Award of Merit qualification which is higher than the Bronze Medallion Certificate.
When our swimming pools are hired out for training purposes, no life-guards are provided as the responsibility of seeing to the safety and conduct of all the trainees rests with the instructors engaged by the organizers. However, life- guards are provided for competitive events including swimming galas organized by schools and other organizations.
In respect of competitive events, hirers are permitted to provide their own additional life-guards and to make arrangements with the pool management as to the optimum deployment of our life-guards. If no special arrangements are made, our life-guards will be present throughout the course of the event to ensure the safe conduct of the proceedings.
The investigation into the fatal accident on 10 October 1984 at Victoria Park Swimming Pool is being taken up by the Police and a post-mortem report is being submitted to the Coroner. Before a decision is taken whether to hold an inquest into the cause of death, it would not be appropriate to make any public comments in this respect.
The Department has nevertheless reviewed the safety measures provided at Urban Council swimming pools in the wake of this accident and has come to the conclusion that the existing safety facilities provided are adequate.
In fact, the Department regularly reviews the life-saving facilities provided at Urban Council swimming pools (and beaches) and the life-saving techniques of the life-guards together with improvement in life-saving technology introduced by the Royal Hong Kong Life Saving Society.
MR. L. H. KWAN (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman, in the second point of the answer by Mr. Lo, he mentioned that there are five parts of the Victoria Swimming Pool Complex, including a main pool, a diving pool, a training pool, a children's pool and a paddling pool, and the life-guards are deployed in two shifts. Now are seven life-guards enough for each single shift? Another one is the first shift is from 6.45 a.m. to 3.15 p.m. and the other from 1.15 p.m. to 10.15 p.m., so for the first shift there are 81⁄2 hours and the second shift are 9 hours, are the working hours too long? If the life-guards want to rest, is it possible to get a replacement temporarily?
Mr. Kenneth Lo (in English):—Mr. Chairman, the life-guards are deployed seven per shift and the working hours are stated in my answer and the Department had gone into the question and have concluded that these are adequate.
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MR. L. H. KWAN (in Cantonese):-Mr. Chairman, I would still like to know, given that there are fourteen life-guards, how are they deployed and how many are looking after the main pool and so on? Is there any supervision of which pool they
look after?
MR. KENNETH LO (in English): Mr. Chairman, they are certainly not allowed to wander about at their own free will, but are directed to certain pools. But I do not have the figures at the moment as to how many would be at each particular
pool.
MR. HOWARD YOUNG (in English):—Mr. Chairman, can Mr. Lo Confirm that although the working hours are from 6.45 a.m. to 3.15 p.m. and 1.15 a.m. to 10.15 p.m., the sessions that start from 7.00 a.m. to 10.00 p.m., in fact, are broken down into various sessions with breaks in between, therefore, it means that the guards are not necessary working nine hours.
MR. KENNETH LO (in English):---That is correct, Mr. Chairman.
MR. JOSEPH CHAN (in Cantonese):—Thank you, Mr. Chairman. It is said in paragraph 5 of the reply of Mr. Lo that during training sessions, no life-guards will be supplied, now this policy is questionable, why is it not necessary to have life- guards on duty during training sessions? Why should safety be solely the responsibility of the coaches themselves, so do you want to see whether there are any improvement necessary?
MR. KENNETH LO (in English):—Mr. Chairman, there is a difference between the position when a pool is hired out for a training purpose or used for recreational swimming. When it used for recreational swimming, people just go in and swim by themselves, they may be good swimmers or very poor swimmers or even non-swimmers, therefore, life-guards are very necessary for this. However, when hired out for training purposes, there are qualified trainers and coaches, they are in charge of a particular group and, therefore, it would be appropriate for them to be responsible for the safety and conduct of the people being trained. Of course, the department will go into the question whether even in such circumstances, life-guards will also be provided, this is certainly a possibility.
4. DR. DENNY M. H. HUANG asked the following question (in Cantonese):- May I have a detailed report on the case of a youth who fell fatally from the Signal Hill which is I understand under Urban Council management? Have any measures been taken to prevent a similar incident from happening again?
MR. KENNETH T. C. Lo, CHAIRMAN OF THE RECREATION SELECT COMMITTEE, replied as follows (in English):---This question asks for a detailed report on the case of a youth who was fatally injured in a fall from the Signal Hill Garden and the measures taken to prevent a similar incident from happening again.
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