Despite the Ordinance having been in force for over a decade, many building owners are still encountering difficulties in complying with the requirements—owing to spatial and structural constraints. This is especially the case in respect of the installation of fire service supply tanks on the rooftops of such old-style buildings. In an attempt to address public concerns and further enhance fire safety in such premises, the Fire Services Department (FSD), the Water Supplies Department (WSD) and the Buildings Department (BD) have jointly introduced more flexible and new pragmatic measures for the installation of fire hydrant and hose reel systems. The measures have been effected in three phases since 2016 in a collaborative, adaptable and creative manner. The inter-departmental team’s success in accomplishing these “three impossible missions” won them the Gold Prize of the Inter-departmental Partnership Award under the Civil Service Outstanding Service Award Scheme 2019, in recognition of the three departments’ strenuous efforts to ensure fire safety in such old-style buildings.

Effective enhancement of fire service installations and equipment forms an important line of defence in public safety. It is, however, a thorny issue and indeed a tough challenge for the three departments to work as a team when it comes to assisting owners of over 10,000 old-style buildings across Hong Kong. Without compromising fire safety, the three departments have worked collaboratively to tackle the challenges arising from the spatial and structural constraints of such buildings for carrying out the necessary fire safety improvement works. In this connection, a task force was set up by the three departments from the outset of their collaboration, working towards the common goal of providing innovative and effective solutions to building owners who experienced difficulties in taking forward their fire safety improvement works. In parallel, the departments have also made prudent use of their respective resources to assist the relevant building owners in driving down related project costs, thereby turning the once-thought impossible mission of enhancing fire safety in old-style buildings into an achievable one.

Delivering on the Government’s “people-based” service culture, the three departments have maintained proactive communication with multiple stakeholders. This communication has been achieved through multiple channels with relevant owners of old-style buildings, members of the Legislative Council, members of the District Councils and other stakeholders, such as engineering consultants, registered fire service installation contractors and representatives of professional bodies. The process has helped all concerned get to grips with the difficulties in helping owners of old-style buildings comply with the requirements of enhancing fire safety, which primarily entail the spatial and structural constraints that come into play during the installation of fire service supply tanks, fire pumps and up-feed systems.

Members of the task force have pulled together and performed well in their respective roles throughout the process of research, planning, design and implementation. They have also conducted studies and exchanged views on fire engineering to further streamline details of the scheme. To ensure that the scheme was suitably designed to assist frontline personnel in carrying out firefighting and rescue, they took the pragmatic step of conducting on-site tests at the Fire and Ambulance Services Academy. This test simulated the water supply required for the buildings’ fire hydrant and hose reel systems when fire personnel were performing their duties at fire scenes. The task force’s objective was to conduct a risk assessment on different scenarios through trial and error—taking into account fire personnel operational efficiency and the various buildings involved. After this, a feasible plan was then formulated to maximise assistance for frontline personnel in discharging their duties. The scheme’s design, research, implementation and promotion work were carried out smoothly—underlining the importance of teamwork and the full support rendered by the management teams of the three departments involved.

Task force members conduct various experiments and tests at the Fire and Ambulance Services Academy.

With the collaboration between FSD and WSD, the fire service installations make use of newly introduced backflow preventers to avoid contamination of fresh water by the water used for firefighting.

When the plan was first devised, FSD and WSD had different views over issues such as the incorporation of a fresh water supply system into fire service installations. WSD was concerned that allowing a fresh water supply system for concurrent use by fire service installations could increase the risk of fresh water contamination. On the other hand, BD attached importance to ensuring building safety by assessing the impacts brought about by the relevant works on such buildings’ existing structural loading, fire-resisting construction and means of escape. Despite the challenges, members of the task force remained united with mutual support for one another. To address the issues, each of the departments pursued intensive studies with vigour to determine the best way forward, while striking a balance among the concerns of various parties. The final breakthrough materialised when the scheme introduced the use of backflow preventers, which had been successfully tried in other countries, to prevent fresh water from being contaminated by water used for firefighting. This innovative solution resolved the major technical issue of ensuring both fresh water purity and building safety.

Under the Hose Reel System Scheme (Phase 2), fire service supply tanks can now be installed even in narrow spaces.

The scheme makes the most of both existing technologies and innovative ideas. Three types of modified fire service installations have been developed in phases to meet the needs of three types of old-style buildings of different heights in the city. The Improvised Hose Reel System Scheme (Phase One) allows fire hose reel systems in buildings with three storeys or less to be fed directly from the government water mains, dispensing with the need to install a new fire service supply tank and fire pumps. Under the Hose Reel System Scheme (Phase Two), the required effective capacity of supply tanks in buildings of four to six storeys is revised downward to a range between 500 and 1,500 litres, according to the results of their risk assessment. Under the Fire Hydrant and Hose Reel System Scheme (Phase Three), the required effective capacity of supply tanks in buildings of seven storeys or above is revised downward from 9,000 litres to 4,500 litres upon risk assessment. Besides, backflow preventers have also been successfully introduced as part of the scheme to help resolve technical issues, such as possible contamination of fresh water by the water used for firefighting.

It has been a ground-breaking move to incorporate a fresh water supply system into fire service installations and use the water supply of the former for the latter, hence addressing the difficulties in installing fire service supply tanks on the rooftop of old-style buildings due to their insufficient structural loading, limited room and multiple-ownership problems. Combining the two systems into one can significantly reduce the time and costs required for such works. Moreover, it helps conserve the natural resources otherwise needed for installing new fire service installations—thereby minimising environmental impact. Developed around a user-oriented approach, the scheme helps lower the costs of the associated works and alleviate related public financial burdens.

Members of the task force have made use of various channels to brief different stakeholders on, and share with them, the valuable lessons learned from the scheme. Among them are in-house staff training, briefing sessions and seminars for registered fire service installation contractors and professional bodies to exchange views, as well as talks and circulars to help relevant building owners. The task force has also taken a step further by sharing the scheme and its details with the public through the media and social networking platforms, identified suitable target composite buildings and involved them in the pilot scheme. Under the joint efforts of the three departments, diverse staff teams have worked in unison and were given full play to apply their professionalism and team spirit to lead the smooth implementation of the scheme. The innovative solution encompasses the three-phase installation/enhancement of fire hydrant/hose reel systems and the pilot scheme to incorporate fresh water systems into existing fire hydrant/hose reel systems. It is heartening to note that the scheme has accomplished three impossible missions by successfully tackling difficulties arising from, among others, spatial and structural constraints and ownership challenges associated with the installation of fire service installations in over 10,000 old-style buildings of varying heights, which fall under three categories under the Ordinance, across the territory.

Briefing sessions/seminars on the details of the scheme were organised to brief stakeholders, such as engineering consultants, registered fire service installation contractors and representatives of professional bodies.

The three departments hold regular meetings to discuss the innovative solutions, and from time to time review the progress of fire safety improvement works in old-style composite and domestic buildings. This, coupled with the support from the Government’s Fire Safety Improvement Works Subsidy Scheme, has provided comprehensive assistance to the owners of over 10,000 old-style buildings in Hong Kong. The three departments have upheld the Government’s vision to serve the public and maintained close cooperation to flexibly and pragmatically help owners tackle technical problems and drive down the cost of such improvement works. Completion of such works facilitates compliance with relevant laws and regulations, as well as the enhancement of home safety. Moreover, it also helps sustain Hong Kong’s status as one of the safest cities in the world. The task force will remain dedicated to their cause and serve the community to the best of their ability.