More than 700 seek counselling

More than 720 people upset by the Manila hostage tragedy had poured their emotional problems out to a helpline jointly set up by the Hong Kong Red Cross and the Hong Kong Psychological Society by last night. The helpline received more than 300 calls the day after the incident, with the number of calls gradually tailing off. Most callers were women who watched the tragedy live on television. Some of them reported sleeping problems. The helpline stopped operating last night.