The Commissioner's Reserve
Finding that reserve can be difficult if, as is the case with the Hong Kong Police Force, management and administration, specialist units, formation, district and divisional headquarters and the officers deployed on frontline duties are all fully committed to their various tasks. But, the Force has a cost-effective and efficient solution to the problem: The Commissioner's Reserve. Police Tactical Unit companies take turns designating one platoon per shift for standby duty. They perform routine tasks until they are summonsed for Commissioner's Reserve response duties.
Prior to the SARS outbreak, OffBeat had been invited to attend a practice call-out of the Commissioner's Reserve by Kowloon East PTU Delta Company Platoon Two (Delta Two) Inspector, Mr Jonas Kwong.
"There is a PTU company in training at PTU Headquarters and one is 'resident' in each of the land regions," explained Mr Kwong. Each company has four platoons each of 41 officers (including two inspectors, a station sergeant, eight sergeants and officers from Police Training School). At any given time, there is one platoon from the regionally deployed companies serving as the Commissioner's Reserve, ready for duty anywhere in Hong Kong.
"They work a conventional shift of eight-and-three-quarter hours, the extra 45 minutes ensures that there is an efficient hand-over between shifts," said Mr Kwong. "They are now deployed on normal duties outside the operational base - mainly on anti-crime patrols - but will reform as a platoon immediately after receiving an emergency call out. The mandatory time limit on a 'reform and ready-to-go' is 30 minutes and all PTU platoons have been trained to be able to meet the limit.
"The platoon has its own dedicated transport - a command vehicle and two troop carriers. The officers are deployed in 'bricks' of four officers (one sergeant and three police constables or woman police constables), each with its own 'brick' box containing arms and ammunition (ordinary rounds, baton rounds and chemical spray) and individual bags of chemical-proofed clothing, full-face helmet, respirator, batons, shields."
OffBeat was taken on a tour of the armoury, mapping, stores and training rooms. "Of course, we have to have good maps covering the whole of Hong Kong and the drivers have to be familiar with the optimum route to any location at any particular time of the day," explained Station Sergeant Mr Lau Yam-ming.
Mr Kwong and Mr Lau, then raised the alarm and Delta Two members quickly assembled at the armoury and, as the photographs show, in a quick, no-nonsense fashion drew, checked and loaded their weapons, checked the contents of their 'brick' boxes, collected their individual 'turnout' bags and boarded the waiting transport. Within a few minutes Delta Two was ready to hit the road! It was really quite impressive.
In a genuine call-out, of course, the vehicles would then have set off at speed, with sirens shrieking and lights flashing, to wherever they were needed.
"Of course," said Mr Kwong, "in a real emergency response, initially we rarely know what kind of disaster we are facing or, in respect to crowd management problems, what level of resistance, disorderliness and even violence we will encounter at our destination. But we will certainly receive a radio-relayed briefing en route.
"We also respond to calls from formations wanting assistance for major operations. We are well-trained, well-motivated, and more than capable of handling anything we come up against," he concluded.
