Secretary for Security Chris Tang on Monday said the government is planning to hold at least one joint drill with authorities in Shenzhen to test out the readiness of the new Huanggang port facility.

Tang said the previous two drills, held last Thursday and Saturday to test traffic and passenger flows inside and around the facility, went very smoothly.

He said at least one further drill needs to be held alongside Shenzhen authorities to test out automated clearance gates at the checkpoint.

"One test session is the minimum", Tang said. "Of course, we also have a major drill scheduled for the 22nd, which is next Saturday.

"But we'll need to see the progress of the installation and commissioning of the gate machines before we can determine whether we'll be able to test those gates on that day," he added.

He said the government would take note of all the feedback it has received from the first two drills.

"So far the test is satisfactory, but of course we have observed a few points that we can further improve on. For example, we can beef up direction signs, and enhance traffic flows and passenger queuing arrangements at the public transport interchange", Tang said.

"We also found that there aren't enough benches inside the facility."

Tang said two more large-scale drills to be held on August 22 and 29 will aim at stress-testing all facilities at the new port area, with the tests to involve 10,000 and 20,000 people respectively.



Edited by Cecil Wong