Press Releases

Public urged to keep homes clean and well maintained

The Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Dr Yeoh Eng-kiong, today (January 15) called on the public to help prevent a community outbreak of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) by keeping their homes and living environment clean and well maintained at all times.

He made the above appeal as Hong Kong enters into a high-risk period with suspected and confirmed SARS cases reported in neighbouring Guangdong.

Dr Yeoh said the coincidence of environmental and health events had contributed to the spread of the SARS coronavirus in Amoy Gardens last spring. Both investigations of the Government and the World Health Organisation concurred that drying up of floor drain traps in many apartments there, was one of the environmental factors that had given rise to the outbreak.

Speaking after watching two drainage ambassadors inspect the drainage system of a household in Fu Cheong Estate this afternoon, Dr Yeoh said: "It is important for occupants to ensure the proper functioning of the U-traps by filling them with water regularly. Such a simple act will help prevent putrid air and insects in the soil pipe from entering our bathrooms and kitchens.

"Keep your homes well maintained. If there is a defect in the trap or the smell of foul air is coming from the drain outlet, arrange inspection and repair immediately. Do not alter your drains and pipes without prior authorisation," he added.

Dr Yeoh visited Fu Cheong Estate this afternoon to see the clean-up and enforcement efforts of the Housing Department (HD) in public housing estates and to learn more about the sewage inspection and rectification work in residential buildings.

Dr Yeoh also witnessed the placement of rat bait at a refuse collection point of the estate by cleaning staff of the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) as part of its ongoing anti-rodent efforts.

He was then briefed by staff members of the Buildings Department (BD) on the new design requirements for the drainage systems for public/private residential buildings.

Dr Yeoh stressed that territory-wide, cross-sectoral efforts to combat SARS had to remain in top gear in this "critical" period. He said the Health, Welfare and Food Bureau had been coordinating interdepartmental efforts to stem a possible return of SARS.

Earlier this morning, the Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food, Mrs Carrie Yau, convened another interdepartmental meeting to discuss precautionary measures against SARS, focusing mainly on actions relating to rodent control, year-end clean-up, and sewage inspection and repair.

The meeting was attended by senior representatives from departments/agencies including the Department of Health, Hospital Authority, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department, Buildings Department and Housing Department.

The meeting noted that departments had stepped up their precautionary measures to guard against the return of SARS. These actions included:

* FEHD launched a three-week clean-up programme on December 29 last year. It comprised intensive cleaning of over 850 hygiene blackspots; stepped-up inspections of 83 wet markets, 50 cooked food centres and 14 hawker bazaars; cleaning services for over 1,000 old tenement buildings; limewashing of some 100 back lanes and some 100 common areas of old tenement buildings.

* FEHD has also enhanced rodent control through trapping, placement of rat bait, filling of rat holes, clearing places where rats could be harboured and conducting rodent surveys. Weekly anti-rodent inspections were made at acute hospitals and other hospitals with facilities for treating febrile/pneumonia patients. It would also advise hospital administrators to take immediate remedial action if signs of rodent infestation are found.

* BD has inspected the external drainage pipes of around 30,000 private residential buildings since last April. Over 80% were found to be in good condition. For the 5,700-odd buildings with defects identified, about one-third had been repaired while advisory letters and repair orders had been issued for the reminder.

* For defective drainage works constituting an emergency, BD would adopt a zero-tolerance rectification approach based on the "Act First, Recover Costs Later" principle.

* In a similar vein, HD implemented a drainage ambassador scheme in May last year to conduct door-to-door inspections of internal drainage pipes in old housing blocks or blocks occupied by senior citizens. So far, a total of 282,000 units in 831 housing blocks have been inspected. Defects identified in 83,400 units had been rectified.

* In parallel, HD implemented a marking scheme to strengthen enforcement measures against hygiene-related offences in public housing estates to improve the living environment. So far, points had been registered for some 1,200 households mainly because of littering and spitting. These enforcement efforts were made in tandem with educational and promotional activities.

An inter-departmental meeting was convened last Thursday (January 8) to discuss enhanced measures to guard against SARS following the reporting of isolated confirmed and suspected SARS cases in Guangdong.

Ends/Thursday, January 15, 2004
NNNN