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Following is a reply by the Secretary for Security, Mr Ambrose S K Lee, to a question by the Hon Wong Ting-kwong in the Legislative Council today (October 22):
Question:
It has been reported that over the past several months, there were a number of cases of ambulances breaking down while attending service calls. The situation has given rise to public concern whether emergency ambulance service has been delayed. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the number of cases of ambulances breaking down while attending service calls since January this year, how this number compares with the average number in each of the past three years, as well as the causes of such incidents;
(b) given that 35 and 88 new ambulances will be commissioned next month and next year respectively, of the expenditure involved, the criteria for determining the priority of ambulance replacement, and whether priority will be given to replacing ambulances with longer years of service and those which mainly serve districts of larger populations and bigger areas; and
(c) of the results of the inspections carried out by the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department on all ambulances in July and August this year following cases of ambulance breaking down one after another; and whether the Administration will increase the frequency of ambulance inspection and formulate a long-term plan for ambulance replacement?
Reply:
President,
(a) From January to September this year, there were a total of 680 maintenance cases on ambulances of the Fire Services Department (FSD) arising from mechanical failure, representing an average of 76 cases per month. These cases include breakdowns occurred while the ambulances were attending service calls and those occurred during standby. The figures are comparable to those recorded over the past three years from 2005 to 2007.
From January to September 2005, there were a total of 814 maintenance cases, representing a monthly average of 90 cases. There were 711 cases within the same period in 2006, or an average of 79 cases per month. Within the same period in 2007, there were 760 cases or 85 cases per month on average.
Generally speaking, the frequency of ambulance breakdown is higher in the summer from July to September. Take the figures in 2005 to 2007 for example, there was an average of 108 ambulance breakdown cases per month in the summer, which was about 40% higher than that in other months. The higher number of ambulance breakdown in the summer may be attributed to the heat and humidity, which makes the air conditioners on the ambulances more prone to damage, depletes the batteries and wears out engine belts. Vehicle age is also a contributing factor in some cases.
(b) The Administration has all along been replacing ambulances in accordance with the need. As for the 123 ambulances mentioned in the question, funding for their replacement was secured in previous years. The expenditure involved is around HK$147 million. In addition, in the Resource Allocation Exercise this year, the Government has provided further funding to the FSD for the procurement of a further 73 ambulances in batches. The expenditure involved is around HK$97 million. In other words, the Government has altogether allocated some HK$240 million to replace a total of 196 aged ambulances in batches. Of these new vehicles, the first 100 will be put into service before the end of 2009, with the remaining 96 becoming available within the first half of 2010. After all 196 ambulances have been put into service, 80% of the FSD's new ambulance fleet will be under two years old, and the age of the fleet will be reduced from the current average of 8.4 years to 1.7 years.
Under the current arrangement of FSD for replacing ambulances, the main criteria include the age, maintenance history and mileage of the vehicles. When the replacement exercise is largely completed by mid-2010, nearly 80% of the ambulance fleet will have been replaced and all ambulance regions in the territory will benefit.
(c) From July 24 to 30, the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) carried out a round of special inspection on all 250 ambulances in FSD's fleet. During the inspection, engine belts, batteries and air-conditioner components were replaced immediately, if required. As for preventive maintenance, the EMSD has increased the frequency of scheduled maintenance on ambulances from three to four times a year since September 16, 2008. With the commissioning of a large number of new ambulances, more frequent scheduled maintenance, and closer monitoring by FSD staff on the operation and maintenance of ambulances, the Administration is confident that in the long run, the reliability of ambulance service will be enhanced to ensure the provision of quality emergency ambulance service.
Ends/Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Issued at HKT 14:38
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