A dragon boat sponsored by the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in New York (HKETONY) glided across the Central Park Lake this morning (July 20, New York time) as part of the festivities leading up to the annual Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival in New York.
      
     Representatives of the Festival organising committee, HKETONY, New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, and other sponsors took part in the "eye-dotting" ceremony to bring the dragon boats alive for the upcoming Festival to be held on August 12 and 13 at the Flushing Meadows Corona Park. 
      
     Addressing the ceremony, the Director of the HKETONY, Ms Candy Nip, said the Festival represents the Office's commitment to promoting Chinese culture, Hong Kong traditions as well as friendship between Hong Kong and New York.
      
     The HKETONY first introduced modern dragon boat racing to New Yorkers in 1991 with 10 teams competing on the Hudson River. Since then, the Festival has become an annual summer extravaganza on the city's event calendar. Over 170 teams will contest each other on strength, stamina, technique and sportsmanship on the Meadow Lake this year.

        

     The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health (DH) today (July 21) reminded members of the public, particularly those undertaking outdoor activities, to take heed of necessary measures against heat stroke and sunburn in very hot weather.

     "The public should carry and drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration while engaging in outdoor activities," a spokesman for the CHP said.

     "Those engaged in strenuous outdoor activities should avoid beverages containing caffeine, such as coffee and tea, as well as alcohol, as they speed up water loss through the urinary system," the spokesman explained.

     "Children, the elderly, the obese and those with chronic illnesses, such as heart disease or high blood pressure, are more vulnerable to heat stroke. They should pay special attention," the spokesman added.

     The public should adopt the following precautions:
 

• Wear loose and light-coloured clothing to reduce heat absorption and facilitate sweat evaporation and heat dissipation;
• Avoid vigorous exercise and prolonged activities like hiking or trekking as heat, sweating and exhaustion can place additional demands on the physique;
• Perform outdoor activities in the morning or the late afternoon;
• For indoor activities, open all windows, use a fan or use air-conditioning to maintain good ventilation;
• Do not stay inside a parked vehicle; and
• Reschedule work to cooler times of the day. If working in a hot environment is inevitable, introduce shade in the workplace where practicable. Start work slowly and pick up the pace gradually. Move to a cool area for rest at regular intervals to allow the body to recuperate.

     
     â€‹The public should also note the latest and the forecast Ultraviolet (UV) Index released by the Hong Kong Observatory (HKO). When the UV Index is high (6 or above):
 

• Minimise direct exposure of the skin and the eyes to sunlight;
• Wear long-sleeved and loose-fitting clothes;
• Wear a wide-brimmed hat or use an umbrella;
• Seek a shaded area or put on UV-blocking sunglasses;
• Apply a broad-spectrum sunscreen lotion with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 15 or above. Apply liberally and reapply after swimming, sweating or towelling off; and
• While using DEET-containing insect repellents for personal protection against mosquito-borne diseases, apply sunscreen first, then insect repellent.

    If symptoms develop, such as dizziness, headache, nausea, shortness of breath or confusion, rest and seek help immediately, and seek medical advice as soon as possible.

     â€‹The public may obtain more information from the DH's Health Education Infoline (2833 0111), heat stroke page and UV radiation page; the HKO's Dial-a-Weather (1878 200), latest weather report and forecast, UV Index and weather information for hiking and mountaineering; and press releases of the Labour Department on precautions against heat stroke for outdoor workers and their employers when the Very Hot Weather Warning is in force.

Attention TV/radio announcers:

Please broadcast the following as soon as possible:

     The Hong Kong Observatory has issued the Very Hot Weather Warning.

     To prevent heat stroke, avoid prolonged activities outdoors.

     If engaged in outdoor work or activities, wear a wide-brimmed hat and light-coloured, loose-fitting clothes. Stay in shaded areas as much as possible.

     Drink plenty of water, and avoid beverages containing caffeine or alcohol.

     If you feel sick, consult a doctor right away.

     While celebrating its 6th anniversary, the Police Anti-Deception Coordination Centre (ADCC) organised a tram tour today (July 20). The Commissioner of Police, Mr Siu Chak-yee, and representatives of 16 public and private organisations (list of supporting organisations in the Annex) which have been working closely with Police in disseminating anti-deception messages were invited to officiate at the kick-off ceremony. The officiating guests later boarded the tram adorned with the latest anti-deception promotional messages and broadcasting anti-deception songs and information to travel from Sheung Wan to Causeway Bay. The guests, along with more than 40 SILVERSHIELD ambassadors, distributed anti-deception leaflets and souvenirs to the public in Causeway Bay with a view to raising public awareness of deception, thereby preventing them from being scammed.

     To step up combat actions against deception and raise public awareness of scams, the Hong Kong Police Force set up the ADCC under the Commercial Crime Bureau (CCB) with a view to consolidating all the relevant efforts of the Force and stakeholders in fighting and preventing the crime. Coming into operation on July 20,  2017, the ADCC performs the following major functions: to operate a round-the-clock enquiry hotline “Anti-Scam Helpline 18222”; to closely work with local financial institutions, overseas law enforcement agencies and the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) to intercept payments made by victims to minimise their pecuniary loss; to take intelligence-led enforcement actions and deploy Scams Response Team officers to intervene and stop on-going deception cases; and to co-ordinate Police resources and enhance liaison with stakeholders to formulate all-round anti-deception publicity campaigns.

     Since its establishment, the ADCC has received over 160 000 calls from the public, prevented 2 000 on-going deception cases and intercepted defrauded money as much as $11.79 billion. Moreover, with assistance from different units, the ADCC has mounted 632 operations and arrested 661 persons, involving at least 614 deception cases as at May 31.

     To better facilitate the interaction with the public and encourage organisations and people from different sectors in the community to help convey anti-deception messages, the CCB launched “Project SILVERSHIELD” in June this year, in which SILVERSHIELD ambassadors were recruited and trained in collaboration with various government departments, public and private organisations. The CCB also held a number of anti-deception events to spread anti-deception messages and promote “Scams are rampant; Tell everyone”.

     In an effort to step up anti-deception publicity to address the trend of deception cases, the ADCC will launch a series of major anti-deception promotional campaigns from late July to August. For more details about the anti-deception campaigns and the latest anti-deception information, please visit the ADCC’s website (www.adcc.gov.hk) or the official account on Xiaohongshu “Hong Kong Anti-Deception Coordination Centre” (xhslink.com/AVqgBn).

        

     The Secretary for Security, Mr Tang Ping-keung, called on the Zhongshan Municipal Public Security Bureau and conducted visit activities in Foshan and Zhongshan today (July 20), completing his series of visits to all cities of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) in recent months.

     Mr Tang called on Vice Mayor of Zhongshan cum Director-General of the Zhongshan Municipal Public Security Bureau, Mr Lu Gang, in the afternoon. Deputy head of the Zhongshan Municipal Emergency Management Bureau Mr Peng Shangzhan was in attendance. Mr Tang exchanged views with them on issues including combatting cross-boundary crimes and emergency management, and explored co-operation in different fields for enhancing synergistic development. Mr Tang introduced in the meeting a new plan formulated by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government to further enhance the capability of GBA cities in handling incidents together, including strengthening exchanges on technology and knowledge, resource sharing, as well as emergency mobilisation co-ordination.

     Mr Tang said that after concluding the visit to Zhongshan, he has completed the series of visits to all GBA cities starting from April this year. He expressed his gratitude to the public security bureaux, emergency management bureaux and fire and rescue brigades of all the cities for studying the relevant emergency response plan with the leadership and co-ordination of the Guangdong Provincial Government. He said he looked forward to holding joint working meetings later to take forward the plan.

     Mr Tang then visited the e-Park (Zhongshan) and learnt more about its operation. He also chatted and exchanged views with young Hong Kong entrepreneurs, and explored how the HKSAR Government could help their development in the GBA. During his stay in Foshan, Mr Tang enjoyed martial arts performances at the Feihong Pavilion in Nanhai and learnt more about the origin, inheritance and development of Foshan's martial arts culture. Mr Tang praised the local use of innovative technologies to present the diversity of traditional martial arts, which perfectly combined tradition and modernity. Such creative methods provide great inspiration to the future work of the bureau.

　　Mr Tang concluded the two-day visit to Zhaoqing, Foshan and Zhongshan, and returned to Hong Kong in the evening.