â€‹The Home Affairs Department will continue to open 19 community halls/community centres as temporary heat shelters today (June 3).

     The temporary heat shelters will remain open for people to take refuge from the heat when the Very Hot Weather Warning is in force. From 10.30pm to 8am the next day, the temporary heat shelters will also provide bedding and a sleeping place for people in need. The shelters are manned by duty attendants.

     For further information, please call the department's hotline before midnight on 2572 8427.

     The heat shelters are located at:
 
Hong Kong Island:
———————
 
Central and Western –
Sai Ying Pun Community Complex Community Hall
3/F, Sai Ying Pun Community Complex
2 High Street, Sai Ying Pun

Eastern –
Causeway Bay Community Centre
3/F, 7 Fook Yum Road, Causeway Bay
 
Southern –
Wah Kwai Community Centre
Wah Kwai Estate, Kellett Bay
 
Wan Chai –
Wan Chai Activities Centre
LG/F, Wan Chai Market, 258 Queen's Road East, Wan Chai
 
Kowloon Districts:
——————
 
Kowloon City –
Hung Hom Community Hall
1/F, Kowloon City Government Offices
42 Bailey Street, Hung Hom
 
Kwun Tong –
Lam Tin (West) Estate Community Centre
71 Kai Tin Road, Lam Tin
 
Sham Shui Po –
Shek Kip Mei Community Hall
G/F, Block 42, Shek Kip Mei Estate, Sham Shui Po
 
Wong Tai Sin –
Tsz Wan Shan (South) Estate Community Centre
45 Wan Wah Street, Tsz Wan Shan
 
Yau Tsim Mong –
Henry G Leong Yaumatei Community Centre
60 Public Square Street, Yau Ma Tei
 
New Territories Districts:
————————–
 
Islands –
Tung Chung Community Hall
G/F, Tung Chung Municipal Services Building, 39 Man Tung Road, Tung Chung
 
Kwai Tsing –
Kwai Shing Community Hall
Podium, Block 6, Kwai Shing West Estate, Kwai Chung
 
North –
Cheung Wah Community Hall
Cheung Wah Estate, Fanling
 
Sai Kung –
Hang Hau Community Hall
G/F, Sai Kung Tseung Kwan O Government Complex, 38 Pui Shing Road, Hang Hau, Tseung Kwan O
 
Sha Tin –
Lung Hang Estate Community Centre
Lung Hang Estate, Sha Tin
 
Tai Po –
Tai Po Community Centre
2 Heung Sze Wui Street, Tai Po
 
Tsuen Wan –
Lei Muk Shue Community Hall
G/F, Hong Shue House, Lei Muk Shue Estate, Tsuen Wan
 
Tuen Mun –
Wu Shan Road Community Hall
101 Wu Shan Road, Tuen Mun
 
Yuen Long –
Long Ping Community Hall
Long Ping Estate, Yuen Long

Yuen Long –
Tin Yiu Community Centre
Tin Yiu Estate, Tin Shui Wai
 
    In addition to the above heat shelters, a number of community halls/community centres can also be used for taking refuge from the heat during their operating hours. For their address details, please browse the following document: www.had.gov.hk/file_manager/en/documents/public_services/emergency_services/List_CH_CC_Day_E.pdf.

     The Commissioner for Census and Statistics, Mr Leo Yu, officiated at the prize presentation ceremony of 2022/23 Statistical Project Competition (SPC) for Secondary School Students of the Hong Kong Statistical Society at the Auditorium of the Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups Building today (June 3). The Deputy Secretary for Education, Ms Teresa Chan, also attended as an officiating guest. The President of the Hong Kong Statistical Society, Professor Alan Wan; the Chief Adjudicator of the competition, Professor Cheung Ka-chun; and the Chief Strategy Officer of Hang Seng Indexes Company Limited (sponsor of the competition), Ms Candy Lam, also presented prizes to the winning teams and extended their congratulations to every member of the teams.
 
     Addressing the prize presentation ceremony, Mr Yu encouraged students to continue to make good use of data and statistical methods in their daily lives in order to deepen their understanding of the society, as well as to contribute to the society by harnessing their analytical capabilities and creativity. Over the years, the Census and Statistics Department has been sparing no effort in promoting youth affairs. The Department has all along been striving to organise and participate in a wide array of student activities to facilitate whole-person development of students and help them develop social and civic awareness, thus contributing to nurturing the next generation who will play an indispensable role in the development of the society. 
 
     This edition of the competition received an encouraging response of 237 statistical projects from about 950 secondary school students, covering a broad spectrum of topics. The participating students were able to utilise official statistics as the main source of data to analyse and interpret social and economic issues in Hong Kong.
 
     The 2022/23 SPC, co-organised by the Hong Kong Statistical Society and the Education Bureau, is the 37th edition of the competition. The Commissioner for Census and Statistics is the patron of the competition, while many statistician grade staff members of the Census and Statistics Department have been proactively participating in the organisation and professional adjudication of the SPC in the capacity of members of the Hong Kong Statistical Society over the past years, with a view to improving statistical literacy among secondary school students and promoting the application and importance of statistics in the society. The key objectives of the competition are to promote the interest of secondary school students in research methods, statistics and statistical techniques; encourage students to understand the local community in a scientific and objective manner through the proper use of statistics; and promote a sense of civic awareness.
 
     Members of the public are welcome to visit the webpage of the competition for the list of winners this year (www.hkss.org.hk/index.php/spc$en).

      

     Concerning the tragic incident that occurred in Diamond Hill yesterday (June 2), the Advisory Committee on Mental Health (Advisory Committee) expressed deep concerns and extended its deepest condolences and sincere sympathy to the families of the two deceased today (June 3).

     The Advisory Committee appealed to the public to stop circulating video clips and pictures related to the incident, and be aware of their own mental well-being and that of those around them. They are advised to seek assistance from professionals when in need. Information on mental health support is available at the Advisory Committee's website, "Shall We Talk" (shallwetalk.hk). The Social Welfare Department has set up a mobile service counter at Exit C2 of Diamond Hill MTR Station today to provide support to people who are disturbed by the incident. Meanwhile, the Hospital Authority's mental health hotline is available to provide emotional support to the public, citizens in need may call 2466 7350. The hotline provides 24-hour service with support from medical professionals.
      
     The Advisory Committee believed that this tragedy is an isolated incident and appealed to the public not to be unnecessarily fearful of persons with mental health needs. The public should continue to support them and encourage them to seek help.

     A Recruitment Day for non-locally trained doctors was successfully held in Sydney, Australia, today (June 3). The Hospital Authority (HA), together with the Department of Health (DH) and the medical schools of the University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, promoted the latest pathway and registration arrangement for non-locally trained doctors to practise in Hong Kong to medical students and medical practitioners from Australia, with a view to attracting them to serve in public healthcare institutions in Hong Kong.

     The Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office, Sydney (Sydney ETO) supported the organisation of the Recruitment Day. Over 200 medical students and medical practitioners participated. 

     The Secretary for Health, Professor Lo Chung-mau, said he is delighted to know that the second overseas recruitment exercise was successfully held in Sydney. Professor Lo said, "Attracting talent is a key priority of the Government. The overseas recruitment exercise is one of the initiatives to attract medical students and medical practitioners to serve in the HA, the DH and the two medical schools in Hong Kong. The Health Bureau will continue to spare no effort to attract, retain and nurture healthcare talent."

     The Chief Executive of the HA, Dr Tony Ko, said, "It gives us great pleasure to travel to Sydney and meet with medical students and medical practitioners in person and online in Australia. Members of the delegation introduced to them the working environment of public hospitals, training ladders, living arrangements, etc, for employment in Hong Kong. We received positive responses from the participants and we look forward to seeing them in the HA family soon."

     Addressing the participants in her welcoming remarks, the Director of the Sydney ETO, Miss Trista Lim, said, "Hong Kong has unveiled various initiatives to attract top talent worldwide. In addition to the pathway for qualified non-locally trained doctors to practise in Hong Kong, the Government has recently expanded the Talent List to cover 51 professions, including 13 professions under the healthcare services sector."

     The Government has earlier announced 75 medical qualifications recognised by the Special Registration Committee, including seven in Australia. 

     The Recruitment Day was also supported by the Australasian Medical Services Coalition and the Hong Kong Medical Society of Australia.

            

The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:

     Regarding the unfortunate incident at Diamond Hill yesterday (June 2), the Hospital Authority (HA) is aware of the photos and video clips related to the incident being widely spread through society, and the HA understands that some members of the public who witnessed the accident at the scene, or watched video clips of the accident on the Internet, may feel anxious and uneasy. The HA mental health hotline services are ready to provide emotional support to the public. Those in need may receive assistance from professional medical staff by calling the hotline at 2466 7350 without making an appointment. The hotline concerned operates 24 hours a day. The HA will deploy additional manpower to provide emotional support to citizens in need, hoping to help those affected in dealing with their uneasy emotions.

     The spokesman for the HA said that members of the public may have developed acute stress reactions if they are feeling anxious, panic, anger, or are having difficulty sleeping, experiencing unconscious flashbacks of the event, avoiding relevant people and events, and recalling memories of past traumatic events. Everyone may react differently to the situation while those in need should seek professional medical help immediately.
      
     The HA expresses its deepest condolences to the families of the two deceased.