The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:
During the winter surge, the Hospital Authority is closely monitoring the service demand of Accident and Emergency Departments and the occupancy rate of medical wards in public hospitals. Key service statistics are being issued daily for public information. Details are in the appended table.
Attention TV/radio announcers:
Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:
Here is an item of interest to swimmers.
The Leisure and Cultural Services Department announced today (January 13) that due to big waves, red flag has been hoisted at Clear Water Bay Second Beach in Sai Kung District. Beach-goers are advised not to swim at the beach.
The Labour Department (LD) is highly concerned about the work accident that happened on Stonecutters Island in the afternoon yesterday (January 12), in which a male worker while clearing debris fell through a floor opening from second floor to ground floor of a building under construction. The worker was certified dead in hospital. The LD is saddened by the death of the worker in the accident and expresses its deepest sympathy to the victim's family.
The LD's spokesman said, "We commenced immediate on-site investigation as soon as we were notified of the accident. We have issued suspension notices to the contractors involved to suspend the work activities at the place of work concerned. The contractors cannot resume the work process until the LD is satisfied that measures to abate the relevant risks have been taken."
The spokesman added, "We will complete investigation as soon as possible to identify the cause of the accident, ascertain the liability of the duty holders and recommend improvement measures. We will take actions pursuant to the law if there is any violation of the work safety legislation."
The general duty provisions of the Factories and Industrial Undertakings Ordinance require employers to provide safe working environments, safe plant and safe systems of work for their employees. Those who contravene the above provisions are liable to a fine of $500,000 and imprisonment for six months.
In regard to today's accident, the LD will issue a Work Safety Alert through its website and email, giving a brief account of the accident concerned to duty holders, workers' unions, professional bodies of safety practitioners and others, and reminding the industry of the importance of following safety precautionary measures to prevent recurrence of similar accidents.
The LD will also remind the employer concerned of the liability for employees' compensation under the Employees' Compensation Ordinance, assist family members of the deceased to claim employees' compensation and closely follow up on the case. For those with financial difficulties, the LD will assist them to apply for appropriate emergency funds. Subject to the needs and wishes of family members of the deceased, the LD will also liaise with the Social Welfare Department for financial or other assistance.
For the sake of securing the safety and health of employees at work, the LD appeals to employers to provide plant and systems of work that are safe and without risks to health. Employees should co-operate with their employers, adopt all safety measures and use personal protective equipment provided properly to avoid endangering their own work safety and that of other workers.
The Labour Department (LD) is investigating a fatal work accident that occurred on Stonecutters Island this afternoon (January 12), in which a worker died.
The LD immediately deployed staff to the scene upon receiving a report of the accident, and is now conducting an investigation to look into its cause.
Following is the speech by the Chief Executive, Mrs Carrie Lam, at Diocesan Boys' School 150th Anniversary Inauguration Ceremony today (January 12):
Archbishop Kwong (School Supervisor of Diocesan Boys' School, Archbishop Paul Kwong) , Headmaster Cheng (Headmaster of Diocesan Boys' School, Mr Ronnie Cheng), guests, teachers, students, parents,
​Good evening.
It gives me great pleasure to be here today in honour of the Diocesan Boys' School (DBS) and its 150th anniversary. Incidentally, I attended my alma mater St Frances' Canossian College's also 150th anniversary celebrations last month. This reminds me that Hong Kong is so very blessed by having these very fine, well-established schools, whether they are Catholic or Anglican, girls or boys schools. They have given Hong Kong the talents that have brought our City to where she is today.
Over the past century and a half, DBS has been educating Hong Kong youth, instilling in them an abiding love of learning, strength of character and spiritual guidance. Hong Kong is much the better, much the richer, thanks to this school.
A few of you may remember, and Headmaster Cheng has just reminded you all, the last time I spoke here. It was April 2009, almost a decade ago. I was then, in my capacity as Secretary for Development, taking part in a Tree Planting Day, signifying perhaps that while it takes a decade to grow a tree, it requires a century to nurture talents, in a holistic way. It was, I remember, a rainy day with an amber rainstorm signal. Still, the torrential rain did not deter us from planting a bauhinia tree at the side of the sports field. I'm told that the tree that we planted is now some five metres in height and already yielding the brilliant blossoms that are a hallmark of the tree. In good time, it will continue to grow and mature, providing shade and serenity for all of us who turn to it.
DBS's beginnings were similarly modest, a simple cement structure planted in a rice paddy field. But blessed with abundant time and faithful nurturing, the School has flourished. Over the years and the decades, thanks to visionary management, dedicated staff and supportive parents, the School has graduated generation upon generation of students. They, in turn, have become illustrious alumni, splendidly serving both the school and Hong Kong, including serveral former and current members of the Legislative Council, my senior civil service colleagues and many others.
Today, DBS continues to pursue academic excellence. No less important, it places equal emphasis on imparting such essential values as integrity and industriousness, discipline, devotion and gratitude. The School, I'm pleased to add, embraces whole-person education, providing its students with wide-ranging opportunities in sports, music, arts, as well as a social services programme and much more.
My Government believes in whole-person education. Education must do more than transfer of knowledge or skills. It has to give our young people broad-based abilities and the essential adaptability to pursue fulfilling careers, and lives, and uninhibited creativity to envision the future.
Since taking office in July 2017, quality education is placed very high on my Government's agenda. Apart from injecting new resources into education, to the tune of $8.3 billion recurrent expenditure by now, task forces led by professionals have been established to look at various aspects of our education system. One task force is assisting the Government in refining the school curriculum at both the primary and secondary levels. Meanwhile, we are doing everything possible to ease stress among students, to engage their creativity and curiosity and to instill in them a love for life-long learning.
In the coming school year, in response to the aspirations of teachers, we will implement an all-graduate teaching force policy in one go in public-sector primary and secondary schools. The point, of course, is to attract and retain talented teachers – professionals who can make a difference. A recurrent Life-wide Learning Grant will also be provided to encourage public-sector schools to organise more out-of-classroom, experiential-learning activities. DBS and other Direct Subsidy Scheme schools will benefit from these new initiatives through a unit subsidy. I have no doubt that you will make optimum use of the new resources, and the opportunities they offer the School and your students.
Again, my congratulations to Diocesan Boys’ School, the School Committee, the principal and teachers for your dedicated work, for continuing a tradition of quality education that now spans 150 remarkable years. I wish the School and every one of you here all the best in the years ahead. Thank you very much.
