Police Constables Ko Chun-hung and Ng Sau-chai were recently singled out for praise for putting their lives on the line to save a man who attempted suicide by jumping off Central Pier. | ||||
"Nothing can be achieved without the professional assistance of others". Police Constables Ko and Ng with their EU HKI car crew colleagues |
THE POLICE CONSTABLES were on patrol when they responded to a call indicating that an individual had fallen into the sea at Pier 7 in Central. They arrived to find a man in the water and the two PCs, who have bronze medals in life-saving, immediately removed their equipment and all restrictive clothing - then dove in and swam out to him. | |||
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Recalls PC Ko: "I called to the man, and although he responded, when we reached him he refused to accept our assistance. So we tried to calm him down, while staying calm ourselves. The current was very strong and once we had him in our grasp it was very difficult to tow him back. He wasn't co-operating at all." Later the police constables would learn that the 24-year-old had quarrelled with his girlfriend before jumping into the sea. Attempting to save a man determined to kill himself by drowning is very dangerous. Both PC Ng's and PC Ko's arms and legs were slightly injured during the rescue because the strong waves and current kept crushing them back up against sharp oyster shells near the shoreline. Said PC Ng, who joined the Force 5 years ago and has served with Water Front, PTU, and with EU HKI for two years: "Saving a man from the sea requires strength and detailed consideration including the evaluation for the safety of, in this case, three people - the victim, PC Ko and myself." Added PC Ko, who has served the Force for ten years, the last three of which have been in EU, HKI: "Because I spend a lot of time swimming and in physical training, I understand the physical condition of my body. So, when I received the call for assistance I was psychologically prepared to jump into the water. The man was on the verge of collapse. If I hesitated, I believe the young man might have drowned." Meanwhile, the PC's colleagues threw lifesavers into the waters from the pier which PC Ko grabbed onto allowing PC Ng, with the suicide victim in his grasp, to then hold onto his partner. A few minutes later, members of the Fires Services Department arrived on the scene. They in turn lowered a small rescue boat into the harbour and manoeuvred to the three men in the water after which they pulled them out and to safety. After the incident both PCs were characteristically reluctant to accept being praised as heroes: "We were just doing our duty as police officers," they said. "Helping those in need of assistance (often under dangerous circumstances) is the normal duty of policemen and women. From the experience of this case, what was re-enforced was the fact that self-confidence and close co-operation between our team members are the dynamic for a successful rescue. Mutual support is important. Nothing can be achieved without the professional assistance of others." | ||||
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THREE teams of motorcyclists from the Hong Kong Police Force won top places in the Elite Safety Bikers Carnival, a safety driving competition open to all motorcyclists in Hong Kong. Twenty teams (with each team comprising three cyclists) took up the challenge.
Overall winner was the Traffic New Territories North team, while Traffic Hong Kong Island placed second and Traffic Kowloon West came third-beating tough competition from teams representing Apple Daily newspaper, Town Gas, Pizza Hut and the Hong Kong Automobile Association to name a few. Traffic accidents involving motorcycles have been on the rise following their growing popularity as a fast, manoeuvrable and relatively inexpensive means of transportation. Attempting to lower such mishaps, the Elite Safety Bikers Carnival was jointly organised by the Hong Kong Police and the Hong Kong School of Motoring in Shatin in an effort to rouse motorcycle owners' awareness to the importance of operating their vehicles in a safe and responsible manner, while at the same time acquiring better defensive driving skills and optimum adherence to road safety. |
 Overall winner was the Traffic New Territories North team |
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In recognition of their achievement - and road motorcycling safety skills - Regional Commander NTN Mrs Wong Leung Kam-shan organised a celebration for the traffic officers. "This event is extremely meaningful in terms of conveying the message that driving a motorcycle safely is of utmost importance," said Mrs Wong. "Our colleagues' sterling performance reflect their skill and the strict requirements of their motorcycle driving training." "This year we are actively promoting public awareness of all aspects of road safety. The winners have set an excellent example of driving in a safe and responsible manner - which is the message that we want to get across to all drivers, the ultimate goal being a reduction in the number of motorcycle accidents and casualties." The three winning police officers who come from different districts in NTN are Sergeant Leung Hon-loi, and police constables Tang Kin-hing and Fung Tsun-kuen. "The competition was divided into five segments," said Sergeant Leung, who has been a traffic officer for 15 years. "The first two parts tested the balance of contestants when driving at a very low speed. We had to drive our motorbikes through a 30 metre narrow road that was 1 metre wide, as well as along a wooden bridge whose width was only 1.5 metres." The third part of the contest tested the riders' abilities and how quickly (while driving at 30 kilometres per hour) they could respond to a signal - in this case a traffic light which competition officials turned red at their discretion. The fourth section of the competition challenged general driving skills and manoeuvrability as well as the co-operation between driver and passenger who had to place tennis balls on top of traffic cones while the driver stuck precisely to a marked course. The final event was perhaps the most difficult and served to determine balance and teamwork between motorcycle drivers. With a plastic stick placed on the back seat section of two motorcycles, the cyclists then had to drive in unison around a course without allowing the connecting stick to fall. "This was our first driving competition. Our training and work experience (enforcing road and highway regulations, rushing to accident scenes and performing traffic control duties on a daily basis) was instrumental in the results we achieved," said Sergeant Leung. "The most important safety aspect of driving a motorcycle is to keep totally alert and always drive defensively," he added. During the celebrations Mrs Wong also took the opportunity to present the Regional Commander's complimentary letter to Police Constable Lee Chi-fai for bravery shown during the arrest of a suspect during the commission of a robbery in Tai Po. | |
