With the Mid-Autumn Festival around the corner, the Housing Department (HD) reminds tenants that those burning wax in the common areas of public rental housing (PRH) estates may cause their households to be allotted penalty points without warning under the Estate Management Marking Scheme and a fine of $1,500 for littering.
 
     An HD spokesman said today (September 8) that parents should stop their children burning wax as it may cause fires and severe burns.
    
     Apart from routine checks by estate offices, for three consecutive days from tomorrow (September 9) to Sunday (September 11), staff from the HD's Regional Patrol Teams and Mobile Operations Unit will be deployed to patrol PRH estates beyond midnight. Additional cleaning workers will also be deployed to clean up early in the morning following the festival day.
 
     Messages urging tenants not to burn wax and to keep the estates clean have been publicised through posters, the Housing Channel and more.
        
     "Although wax burning and littering caused by tenants celebrating the Mid-Autumn Festival have abated in the past few years, we will continue to step up our patrolling this year. If minors refuse to stop the misdeeds despite verbal warning from our patrol staff, we will turn to their parents. The household will be subject to allotment of penalty points under the Marking Scheme. The tenancy will be terminated if 16 points or more have been allotted within two years," the spokesman stressed.
 
     To reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19 in the community, the spokesman urged tenants to maintain personal and environmental hygiene, dispose of litter properly and keep up social distancing. Tenants must comply with the regulations on the prohibition of gatherings of more than the number of people as stipulated by the law, and the mask-wearing requirement.
 
     The spokesman called for PRH tenants' support by reporting any misdeeds to estate offices or the Housing Authority Hotline on 2712 2712.

Ends/Thursday, September 8, 2022
Issued at HKT 16:56

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