Firefighters should in future clear brush around grave sites and install below-ground offerings burners to reduce the risk of hillfires during the Ching Ming Festival, residents and environmentalists said yesterday.
They were angry that little had been done to prevent the annual rash of fires caused by burning offerings.
But a spokesman for the Fire Services Department said authorities had done all they could to educate the public about fire hazards during the festival to honour their ancestors.
An unusually high number of hillfires broke out this year, with 254 from Saturday to Monday, mostly on Sunday, the main festival day.
Last year's figures were unavailable yesterday, but the spokesman said there had been many more fires this year.
An abundance of dry vegetation as well as wind and hot weather conditions over the weekend were blamed in addition to the negligence of some worshippers.