Drainage Services Department

SDEV's Blog: Swiftly Dealing with Rainstorms Continuously Improving Drainage Works

Secretary for Development Bureau, Ms Bernadette LINN Hon-ho invited Mr Joe PUN Ho-yin, Acting Senior Engineer of the Drainage Services Department (DSD), to explain the department's previous response and aftermath work during heavy rains in the blog. Two engineering experts, Ir Dr. Barry LEE Chi-hong, the President of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers, and Dr. May, CHUI Ting-fang, Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering of the University of Hong Kong, were also invited to talk about the strategies for dealing with extreme weather in Hong Kong and other international cities.

Mr PUN said that the DSD will seek funding from the Legislative Council for the seven drainage improvement projects in 2024-25, and will commence and complete the improvement works as soon as possible. In addition, Mr PUN shared that the swift response measures taken by "Emergency Control Center", and the role of existing four stormwater storage tanks during the passage of previous rainstorm. He added that the DSD has proactively applied innovative technologies in the drainage works such as desilting robots and “Smart Drainage Monitoring Sensors” system.

Ir Dr. LEE stressed that the purpose of designing and constructing stormwater drainage facilities is not to achieve "zero risk" of flooding, which would require a deployment of unlimited resources. Flood prevention works must strike a balance between cost and effectiveness. Apart from minimizing flooding risk, the more important thing is quickly clearing blocked drains when flooding occurs in order to help resume normal daily lives for the community shortly. Dr. CHUI explained that due to Hong Kong’s unique geographical environment, it is necessary to consider the space and land constraints as well as the impacts on the environment in formulating flood prevention strategies.

The article was published on "My Blog" of Development Bureau's website. To view the article, please click the link below: https://www.devb.gov.hk/en/home/my_blog/index_id_1544.html?y=2023&p=1

DSD Acting Senior Engineer, Mr Joe PUN Ho-yin, introduced the operation of Emergency Control Centre

The President of the Hong Kong Institution of Engineers, Ir Dr. Barry LEE Chi-kong, mentioned that the infrastructure in Hong Kong should be strengthened to deal with more frequent extreme weather

Associate Professor, Department of Civil Engineering of the University of Hong Kong, Dr. May, CHUI Ting-fang, shared about the strategies of Hong Kong and other international cities in coping with extreme weather