Hong Kong closed ranks yesterday to rush to the aid of thousands of victims, including more than 1,000 holiday goers from the SAR stranded in Southeast Asian countries hit by a tsunami unleashed by one of the most powerful earthquakes recorded in history.
As of the evening, a total of 19 people from the SAR were admitted to hospitals in the tsunami-hit region for injuries; a number were missing. Yet, there was no report of any death involving anyone from Hong Kong.
In other related developments, four immigration officers arrived in Thailand's Phuket to help residents return to the SAR. Airlines also got ready to schedule additional flights to airlift stranded citizens home.
Relief organizations in the SAR were also rallying efforts to dispatch emergency aid to the disaster-hit region while appealing for urgent donations.
Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa said he was deeply grieved over the loss and injury of tens of thousands of people in Asian countries.
In a statement, he said: "On behalf of the community, we express our deepest sympathy and condolences to the victims and their families."
With respect to the plight of Hong Kong people injured or stranded in the disaster, Tung assured that the authorities would make every effort to help them.
He said that immediately after the disaster, the SAR government contacted the country's embassies and consulates in the affected areas to assess the situation and dispatched four immigration officers to Phuket to visit the injured and stranded Hong Kong citizens.
Secretary for Security, Ambrose Lee, said that shortly after he learnt of the disaster on Sunday, an emergency team led by a deputy secretary for security was set up to follow the situation closely.
Citing Hong Kong Travel Industry Council (TIC) information, Lee said over 1,000 Hong Kong people in 30 to 40 groups were in Phuket when the tsunami hit. Many of them have lost their travel documents while making their escape.
The Immigration Department said that by 5 pm, they had received 319 enquiries and 336 requests for assistance and were aware that 19 Hong Kong people were being treated for injuries at local hospitals.
Lee admitted a number of Hong Kong people were still missing.
"We have received a lot of enquiries and requests for help. In many of the cases, we have located the people but in many others, we have yet to," he told the press.
He said the authorities had set up a 24-hour hotline, and urged anyone in need of assistance to also contact the Chinese embassies or consulates. The hotline is: (852) 2829 3010.
TIC Executive Director, Joseph Tung, said the council had contacted all travel agencies with groups in Phuket and was told their members were safe. He said the agencies were arranging for their return to Hong Kong.
Call for quick response
"Thousands have already died because of the flooding. Unless there is a rapid response to the emergency, many more people could die in the coming days. The flood water has contaminated drinking water and food will be scarce," an Oxfam Hong Kong spokesman said yesterday.
"The international community must quickly provide the funds needed for aid agencies to help save lives," the spokesman said. He estimated that besides the deaths and 200,000 others directly affected, as many as one million people could have been left homeless.
"This is a massive humanitarian disaster and communications are so bad that we still do not know the full scale of it," he said.
The Oxfam spokesman appealed to the public for donations for relief aid. Donations can be made to Oxfam's accounts in the Bank of China (012-874-0010515-7) or in HSBC (047-834668-001). Cheques should be made payable to "Oxfam Hong Kong", marked "Earthquake Floods - Asia" on the back.
The Hong Kong branch of Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) said the organization was also mapping out a relief plan for the affected countries and 10 emergency workers were already in India, Malaysia and Indonesia to assess the needs.
A MSF spokesman said a cargo plane carrying 32 tons of medical and sanitary materials would leave for the region as soon as possible. With the arrival of the first batch of relief materials, MSF will start with facilities for 30,000 to 40,000 people in Sumatra.
Hong Kong-based airline Dragonair announced it was ready to provide additional flights to Phuket. The airline's Chief Executive Officer Stanley Hui said they would waive the early return and cancellation fees.
"We are closely monitoring the situation in Phuket and are ready to operate more flights if necessary," Hui said, adding they were also prepared to deploy larger aircraft should the situation warrant.
(HK Edition 12/28/2004 page2)
