Development chief: HK to reassess coastal defence following Ragasa
發佈日期: 2025-09-27 20:19
TVB News
Super Typhoon Ragasa brought storm surges which battered the city's coastline, leaving many waterfront districts badly hit, including restaurants which were swamped.
Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn says the government will continue to review and strengthen facilities that guard low-lying areas from floodwaters.
In Tseung Kwan O South, crashing waves swept the waterfront neighbourhoods when Super Typhoon Ragasa churned past the city smashing seaside restaurants and leaving a trail of destruction.
Secretary for Development Bernadette Linn says a one-metre-high sea wall is being built along the Tseung Kwan O waterfront promenade's cycling track and near its flowerbeds, which is expected to be completed next year.
The remaining coastal tide protection facilities will be reviewed continuously based on experience from this storm.
The Development Secretary says nature is unpredictable, and every experience matters.
In view of some restaurants' predicament this time, the government is considering adding inflatable water barriers to beef up defence.
On a radio programme, Bernadette Linn also higlights how waterfront parks and green spaces have acted like natural "sponges" in absorbing excess water, so new waterfront promenades and parks have been incorporated into emerging development zones to strengthen buffers during storm surges.
Meanwhile, the government set up a "government-wide mobilization" mechanism" in 2022 to deploy designated civil servants to conduct emergency work. But the storm this time did not activate the system for post-typhoon relief efforts.
On another radio programme, Secretary for the Civil Service Ingrid Yeung explains extensive preparations ahead of the storm enabled relevant departments to complete recovery work swiftly without extra manpower needed.
On concerns that some employees still had to work under the Hurricane Signal No. 10, Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun says that employees' safety should be the top priority.
He stresses that workers facing unreasonable arrangements during extreme weather can file complaints through relevant government departments.
