Inter-departmental exercise to test Government&apos;s response capabilities on Daya Bay Contingency Plan
12.1.2023

​A large-scale interdepartmental exercise based on the Daya Bay Contingency Plan (DBCP) and codenamed "Checkerboard III" was conducted today (January 12) to test and enhance the relevant personnel's nuclear emergency preparedness and their knowledge of dealing with nuclear power station emergencies that may affect Hong Kong. The Chief Executive, Mr John Lee, and the Chief Secretary for Administration, Mr Chan Kwok-ki, together with a number of Principal Officials and about 1 400 personnel from various departments and organisations participated in the exercise. The starting scenario of the exercise simulated a chain of equipment fault events at the Guangdong Daya Bay Nuclear Power Station (GNPS), leading to a potential off-site emergency situation involving a release of radioactive materials. Upon notification of the incident in the exercise this morning, the Government simulated the activation of the DBCP and the Emergency Monitoring and Support Centre (EMSC) under the Security Bureau (SB) as well as the dissemination of emergency information to the public through the media. The Hong Kong Observatory (HKO), the Department of Health (DH) and relevant government departments immediately conducted environmental radiation monitoring and assessment and provided timely updates on the situation. In a simulated response to the incident, the Chief Executive's Steering Group chaired by Mr Lee convened a meeting in the morning and deliberated on recommendations made by the Secretary for Security, Mr Tang Ping-keung. Among the recommendations were raising the emergency response level, stepped-up radiation monitoring, and enhanced monitoring of imported food from the Mainland and locally produced food as well as fresh water. And as directed by Mr Lee, Mr Tang chaired the Implementation Task Force meeting coordinating the implementation of the DBCP. Mr Lee, accompanied by Mr Tang, inspected the operation of the EMSC in co-ordinating with relevant bureaux and departments to handle the nuclear emergency, and knew more about the latest situation. To test the Government’s capability of adopting appropriate precautionary measures, the Police assisted in evacuating villagers and visitors in Tung Ping Chau and the Government Flying Service (GFS) deployed a helicopter to convey police reinforcements to sweep the island. During the exercise, a police launch swiftly transported the evacuees to Ma Liu Shui Ferry Pier. The Fireboat 7 participating in the exercise is the world's first civil CBRN (chemical, biological, radiation and nuclear) defense ship certified by classification society, and is capable of carrying out decontamination procedures onboard for evacuees with possible contamination and monitoring outdoor radiation level with its gamma ray detectors during evacuation. The evacuees were immediately recorded by the Electronic-Casualties Management Solution being developed by the police and received radiation assessment after landing to ensure that they were not contaminated. Mobile decontamination units with shower facilities were also used by the Fire Services Department (FSD) to demonstrate decontamination procedures for persons with possible contamination. Information of casualties was simultaneously uploaded to accident & emergency departments of hospitals via the Patient Tagging System for Multiple Casualties Incidents by FSD to allow early preparation for the possibility of receiving large number of casualties. To minimise the health risk to citizens, relevant government departments immediately stepped up the environmental radiation monitoring to assess the potential outcomes resulting from the nuclear incident as soon as possible. Among them, the FSD and the HKO respectively deployed the Fireboat 7, the unmanned aircraft system and firefighting robot installed with advanced radiation monitoring equipment, the Radiological Survey Vehicles, and the Aerial Radiation Monitoring System (ARMS) on helicopters to carry out radiation monitoring at sea, on land and in air, collecting samples from different locations to conduct radiological surveys, investigation and data collection. The Government carried out a series of measures at the Man Kam To Control Point to monitor imported food and goods from the Mainland as well as incoming travellers. The measures included radiation monitoring of imported food and live food animals from the Mainland by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD)’s Man Kam To Food Control Office; and radiation monitoring of inbound trucks travelling from areas within 20 kilometres of the GNPS, goods on board and their drivers, as well as decontamination treatment in case of contamination, by the Customs and Excise Department and other relevant departments. Furthermore, the Auxiliary Medical Service personnel simulated radiation monitoring of people arriving from the Mainland and carried out decontamination procedures for travellers with radiation contamination at the Man Kam To Control Point. During the exercise, the Government disseminated timely information to the public through different channels.The representatives of the SB, the HKO, the DH, the Electrical and Mechanical Services Department and the FEHD also simulated a press conference to provide the public with comprehensive information. To enhance the professionalism of the exercise and strengthen exchanges, the SB invited ministries and commissions in the Mainland and experts from oversea, Macau and local organisations to observe the exercise and offer advice to the Government. They included the National Nuclear Safety Administration, National Nuclear Emergency Response Office, China General Nuclear Power Corporation Limited, Nuclear Emergency Committee Office of the Guangdong Province, Nuclear Emergency Committee Office of Shenzhen Municipality, Macao Unitary Police Service and the International Atomic Energy Agency. Locally, the Radiological Protection Advisory Group, Guangdong Nuclear Power Stations Nuclear Safety Consultative Committee, Hong Kong Institution of Engineers (Nuclear Division), Hong Kong Nuclear Society and Hong Kong Radiation Protection Society as well as members of the Legislative Council Panel on Security were invited. Mr Tang went to Ma Liu Shui Ferry Pier to view the FSD’s demonstration of radiation assessment and decontamination procedures. He also visited the HKO headquarters to observe radiation monitoring and data analysis work and the Exercise Control Centre in the Police Headquarters to know about the situation. Mr Tang said that the safety standards of various aspects of the GNPS have been very high and its performance in terms of safety has been excellent. The chance of serious accidents and nuclear emergencies is very slim. He said that the exercise seeks to ensure the government's nuclear emergency preparedness and relevant professional knowledge, and to enhance the understanding of nuclear power and nuclear emergency preparedness among the public. He expressed gratitude to over 1 400 personnel from six bureaux, 28 departments and three organisations for their participation, the Nuclear Emergency Committee Office of the Guangdong Province for its support in designing scenarios and simulated data for the exercise, and the expert observers for their valuable views. The SB has all along been promoting nuclear emergency preparedness and nuclear safety by various means and the activities held in recent months helped spread the message to some 5 000 persons, including many students. The activities included nuclear safety talks for physics and science teachers in secondary schools, a nuclear forum in the City University of Hong Kong and the HKO open day to disseminate message on nuclear safety. Visits to the nuclear emergency preparedness exhibition at the CLP Power Low Carbon Energy Education Centre of the City University of Hong Kong were also arranged for teenagers. Moreover, various government departments also participated in the publicity, including HKO conducting Gamma-Go Workshops for senior secondary students and FSD organising fire safety talks that feature nuclear emergency preparedness. Ends/Thursday, January 12, 2023 Issued at HKT 21:05 NNNN