Hong Kong holds mass drill to prepare for crowds, emergencies at Kai Tak Sports Park
- More than 1,000 people from various department and organisations take part in crowd management exercise based on simulated arson incident
A safety drill involving 1,400 people across different transport, security and first aid organisations has been conducted in eastern Kowloon to prepare for any future emergencies at Hong Kong’s Kai Tak Sports Park ahead of its opening.
In the early hours of Friday morning, personnel from the MTR Corporation, Hong Kong Police Force, Fire Services Department, Hospital Authority and St John Ambulance gathered at Kai Tak station on the Tuen Ma line and rehearsed a scenario in which 1,000 people used train services after a mega event at the sports park.
The 1,000 people, consisting of MTR staff, their family members and friends, role-played a scenario in which a vandal commits arson on a train, causing injury to other passengers. The other 400 volunteers who took part in the drill were either from the force or were publicly recruited.
The MTR Corp said the simulation was to prepare for any real-world emergency, in which the company learned about a dangerous situation and activated emergency procedures by informing the Fire Services Department and evacuating passengers via the rail tracks.
The drill also tested crowd management measures at the Kai Tak railway station to prepare for the efficient and orderly transfer of a large number of spectators or audience members leaving the park after mega events.
The HK$30 billion (US$3.8 billion) sports park is due to open in the first half of next year and its main stadium will have a capacity of 50,000. The nearest train stations are Kai Tak and Sung Wong Toi.
