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People will have an opportunity to understand more about the work of the Civil Aid Service, such as crowd control, emergency rescues as well as mountain searches and rescues, at its open day next Sunday (April 1).
The service's new headquarters will be open to the public from 10am to 3.30pm on April 1 for the first time since it came into service last August. The open day is also a celebration of the service's 55th anniversary.
A variety of activities will be arranged on the open day, including rescue skill demonstrations, marching band performances and bicycle trick rides which will be staged at frequent intervals from 11.30am.
There will be a handicraft-making demonstration, games stalls and an exhibition, which will enable visitors to know more about the services, history and operations of the Civil Aid Service.
A fleet of service vehicles including mobile command cars, a mobile canteen and motorcycles, as well as equipment and uniforms will be on display.
The Central Command Centre and various training facilities will be open to the public for the first time to enhance public understanding of the disciplined service's operation and training.
Located at No. 8, To Wah Road in Yau Ma Tei, the new eight-storey headquarters has a construction floor area of 11,250 square metres and provides the service with modern training, operational and command facilities.
One of the highlights of the new headquarters is the 20-metre high sports climbing and tactical rescue facility, which offers a purpose-built training environment for the service's Mountain Search and Rescue Companies. The debris pile simulating disaster sites provides field practice for rescuers' training.
A free shuttle bus will run between the Mass Transit Railway Jordan Station Exit C2 (Bowring Street) and the Civil Aid Service Headquarters from 9.45am to 3.15pm on the open day.
Established in 1952, the Civil Aid Service is an auxiliary emergency service financed by the Government with more than 3,600 members from the community. Its primary duty is to augment the regular front-line emergency forces in the event of natural disasters and other emergencies. It also provides various community services such as crowd management for community activities, fire-prevention patrols in country parks, and the provision of training on mountain hiking safety to the public.
Ends/Friday, March 23, 2007
Issued at HKT 15:01
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