Lessons of Macau’s typhoon tragedy
Questions have been rightly raised about preparedness, response and the absence of a sense of urgency after Hato brought loss of life and a collapse of water and power supplies
Our first thoughts are with Macau in its hour of mourning in the wake of Typhoon Hato. Our next thoughts might be to forgive the Hong Kong Observatory for all the No 8 typhoon signals and the subsequent city shutdowns and inconvenience we have moaned about over the years when nothing much actually happened. Macau’s ordeal has underlined the virtue of Hong Kong’s dogged persistence in being prepared for the worst while hoping for the best. This characteristic has once again been instrumental in our city avoiding loss of life during Hato, showing Hong Kong in a good light by comparison with Macau, albeit in a way that we would not want.
The modern casino hub that Macau has become may be far from the backwater of southern China that it was not so long ago. But Hato’s heavy toll in lives and the disruption to water and power supplies is a reminder that we must always be prepared for the worst if we are to prevent the unpredictable violence of nature from causing casualties or leaving people to cope with sub-standard conditions.
That said, the Macau authorities may be entitled to a little sympathy for not anticipating the full fury of what Hong Kong experienced as the most severe typhoon since the 1970s. Nonetheless, strong language of condemnation springs to mind in reflections on preparedness, response and the absence of a sense of urgency proportionate to the threat until it was too late.