The Leisure & Cultural Services Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) said on Monday that it will conduct temporary measures including stage design re-examination and stopping the use of suspended mechanical devices starting from Tuesday, after a task force held a meeting on Monday about investigating the serious incident at the Hong Kong Coliseum.
Before the meeting, related personnel visited the scene of the accident to examine the cause, according to the leisure and cultural services department.
The hirer of a performance venue is required to review the stage design and must ensure the safety of any additional machinery for the benefit of all staff, according to the department. Also, the use of mechanical devices placed high up that rotate or carry people will be temporarily suspended.
Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin of the HKSAR Yeung Yun-hung said the preliminary result is expected to come out within one or two weeks, and it is not appropriate to speculate who is responsible for the accident at this stage, according to local media reports on Monday.
A video panel fell down and wounded two dancers at the Mirror concert at the Hong Kong Coliseum on Thursday evening. Dancer Mo Lee Kai-yin reportedly suffered serious head and neck injuries and is still in a critical condition in hospital. The accident was caused by a metal suspension cord that snapped, according to an initial investigation.
Yeung said that the identity of the registered structural engineer for the concert is known, as is that of the person in charge of the project. A detailed investigation will be conducted and it is not appropriate to speculate or estimate who is responsible at this stage, according to now.com.
Yeung said departments have been assigned with different tasks. The Leisure & Cultural Services Department of the HKSAR will be responsible for identifying the cause of the accident and how to improve the workflow in future concerts. The Labour Department of the HKSAR will follow up on whether the employers have properly protected their staff, and the police will investigate whether the incident involved any professional negligence or other criminal liability, said now.com.
Lawmaker Kenneth Fok Kai-kong of the sports, performing arts, culture and publication sector told the Global Times that he has told the authorities that he hoped to shorten the investigation process and let the public know the cause of the accident as soon as possible.
Fok hopes that the public will give the working group space to conduct the investigation and considered it irresponsible to make accusations without evidence. He is also preparing to form a group with the industry to meet with the SAR government to offer advice.
The HKSAR said on Sunday that the task force will suggest and follow up on recommendations to prevent the recurrence of any similar incidents. Its work focus will include identifying the cause of the incident and finding out whether there was neglect involved.
(Global Times)
