"I have never thought of such an accident could happen to me, and my mind just went blank after it happened." Though the small scar between her eyebrows has gradually faded, Mrs. Cheng still feels the shock and terror when the unexpected accident called to mind.

Mrs. Cheng and Cheuk Yi, her eight-year-old daughter were heading home on a bus from Causeway Bay in June and the accident stroke all of a sudden when they were looking for seats on the upper deck. "The light may have turned red. The bus driver braked so hard that we were thrown forward and crashed onto the railing in the front." Seems suffering from no immediate pain, Mrs. Cheng initially thought she was alright, but scarlet blood was in fact gushing out of her forehead. Her daughter was scared to tears and crying loudly beside her. In this panicked and helpless moment, a young lady appeared and lent Mrs. Cheng a helping hand…

Dear Hong Kong Red Cross Supports,

In my last letter, I have shared with you the educational work of the Hong Kong Red Cross and the encouraging life story of Sean, a special school student suffering from cerebral palsy. Here, I would like to share with you another scope of our humanitarian services - "Disaster Preparedness". Though disasters are always unpredictable, we somehow can prepare ourselves in advance to minimize the potential harm or impact. May you spare a few minutes for me to walk through with you the story of Mrs. Cheng and an elderly community health education project for a deeper understanding to the importance of disaster preparedness work.


Living in Hong Kong, a blessed land rarely suffers from large-scale disasters like deadliest earthquake or tsunamis, you might wonder if it is necessary to be prepared for disasters at all. However, do you still remember the severe flooding and destruction caused by Typhoon Hato just in August, as well as occasional disasters like fires, landslides, and collapse incidents in our communities? Sad to say but, such "disasters" have never been far away from us, and not to mention the unexpected accidents like experiencing a sprain or a cut in daily lives. If we are prepared and equipped with basic knowledge of disaster preparedness, we would be able to take precautions and offer timely assistance to those in need in case of emergency.

Being aware of the importance of First Aid when an accident strikes
To express the great appreciation and thankfulness to Jessica (left), Mrs. Cheng (right) wrote to the Hong Kong Red Cross to praise Jessica’s timely assistance during the accident.
Used to be a Hong Kong Red Cross Youth Unit member, Jessica had started learning first aid since secondary school, and she is now planning to enrich this useful life skill in the Hong Kong Red Cross Adult Unit.

"My mind went blank completely when the accident happened. I barely thought about the bleeding on my face; but just immediately rush to my daughter to see if she was hurt." Falling on the front of the gangway, Cheuk Yi not only scratched her face but also got frightened and burst out crying. "I felt so hopeless at that time and didn’t know how to treat my wound nor to comfort Cheuk Yi. I was so thankful that Jessica was there to give me a hand; otherwise, the consequences may have been too dreadful to even think about." Jessica Yiu, a former member of the Hong Kong Red Cross Youth Unit was also a passenger on the bus when the accident happened. As Jessica has been well equipped with basic first aid knowledge while she was a Youth Unit member, she was the first one to offer help to Mrs. Cheng and her daughter.

"I was listening to music on my headphones and taking a nap. The bus stopped abruptly, and I was awoken by a child’s cry. When I opened my eyes, I saw Mrs. Cheng with a bloodied face, sitting on the floor," Jessica recalled. Realized that the unexpected crash had caused huge chaos on the bus and most passengers had no idea how to help Mrs. Cheng, Jessica first dispersed the crowd, then identified the wound of Mrs. Cheng, and controlled bleeding by compressing the wound with a tissue paper.

"Jessica was so calm and never seem panicked. She asked me to press her arm hard every ten seconds to let her know if I was still conscious." Mrs. Cheng showed deep appreciation to Jessica’s assistance after the accident. "Provided initial treatment for the wound, Jessica immediately called the police and tried to keep Cheuk Yi calm. She also asked Cheuk Yi to notify my husband about the accident and to meet us at the hospital." "Since I have acquired first aid skills before, I was able to stay calm during emergencies," Jessica modestly explained.

Accidents are hard to prevent, yet if we are well-equipped with first aid knowledge, we would be able to offer a helping hand to those in need in case of emergencies like Jessica, and this is exactly why we work hard in promoting "First Aid for All" to enable the public to respond to emergencies in an appropriate manner. May I thank you for your generous support to the Hong Kong Red Cross. Your donation help sustain our first aid services as well as many other disaster preparedness work that brings immediate and appropriate assistance to people in need. To continue in providing our humanitarian services to the needy population, your unfailing support and encouragement are essential for us. We sincerely hope that you will support us with a donation of HK$500 to help us in promoting disaster awareness and preparedness as well as preventive measures to accidents to all walks of life.

In fact, this was not the first time that Jessica had encountered an unexpected emergency. "During my third year in secondary school, one of my classmates harmed herself in the changing room due to enormous study pressure. The wound on her wrist bled excessively. I immediately carried her to the medical room and compressed her wound with a dressing." A fortune in the misfortune, with Jessica’s timely assistance, her classmate was said to be in a satisfactory condition after the treatment. "She gave me a big thank you for saving her life. It’s rewarding for being able to help others."

First aid knowledge allows ones to stay calm during accidents
Admiring the enthusiasm of Jessica, Cheuk Yi told the "big sister" that she also wants to learn first aid when she grows up.
Equipped with first aid knowledge during secondary school, Jessica is able to stay calm during emergencies.

Learning first aid in the Hong Kong Red Cross Youth Unit, Jessica was simply trying to equip herself with an additional life-saving skill. She had never thought that what she had learned would come in handy. "Jessica really was a great help to me. As I was injured and unable to take care of Cheuk Yi, she came with us in the ambulance and comforted Cheuk Yi on the way to the hospital." Mrs. Cheng recalled. "I felt so sorry for Jessica as she had given up a job interview to help us. I was really touched by her empathy and kindliness to us." Though Mrs. Cheng got eight stitches on her forehead, fortunately, the CT scan result was positive, and she recovered nicely.

Both Mrs. Cheng and Jessica have learned a lesson from this accident, in particular, the importance of being prepared for emergencies. Jessica is now planning to join the Hong Kong Red Cross Adult Unit in the coming year. One of the motivations behind is to further improve her first aid knowledge for self-help and helping those in need in crucial moments.

Just as Jessica’s first aid tutor in the Hong Kong Red Cross Youth Unit always said, "You never know when you might need to use your first aid skills. However, when an emergency strikes, you will realize the importance of first aid knowledge." Even though accidents is hard to predict, we will be able to better handle the emergency moments if we are trained with first aid in advance. Apart from offering timely assistance to the needy, knowing the right first aid skills can help prevent wound deterioration and more importantly, increasing the chance of survival.

The Hong Kong Red Cross has been dedicated to disaster preparedness works, including increasing public risk-awareness, providing training on disaster response and preparedness skills to relief staff, and developing programs in disaster risk reduction and community capacity building. On top of overseas disaster preparedness works, the Hong Kong Red Cross also has an active role in local disaster preparedness services, like first aid training and community health education projects. Aiming to raise public awareness on disaster preparedness as well as equipping with sufficient ability to prevent and handle accidents, we have been providing a variety of first aid courses and workshops for our uniform groups, people of all ages and races, as well as vulnerable groups.We hope that you will support us with a donation of HK$500, which can help sustain our disaster and emergency preparedness work and enable more members of the public to have access to first aid knowledge, and live out "Protect Human Life and Care for the Health of the Vulnerable"!

"5-Star Health, 5-Star Home"
promotes home safety awareness among seniors
Through situational quizzes and role-plays, elderly can learn to deal with unexpected accidents while applying knowledge in a fun and interactive way.

Equipping ourselves with first aid knowledge for emergencies is assuredly crucial to "Protect Human Life". However, as the saying goes, "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure", gaining a deeper understanding on preventive measures on disasters, household accidents and diseases, and be prepared for unexpected situations is also equally important.

"Just like in the kitchen, we can easily get burnt by steam if we leave the teapot spout facing outward." Mr. Chui, participant of "5-Star Health, 5-Star Home" Community Health Education Project First Aid Workshop passionately shares the home safety tips he has learnt in the course. "Now, I always turn pot handles away from front of the stove to prevent burns. To prevent falls, the living room is always kept tidy and with sufficient lighting. Moreover, I’ve placed a slip-proof pad on the bathroom floor, too. When we prepare more, then accidents happen less." Mr. Chui, who is retired, agrees that the workshop has not only increased his awareness of home safety but more importantly provided him with basic first aid knowledge, which allows him to stay calm when accidents occur. "Once my wife hurt her finger, which became red and swollen and turned out to be fractured. I immediately put the padding on it, dressed it and wrapped with medical tape. Then I took her to see the doctor. If that had happened before I learn first aid, I would have been too panicked to help her in time."

As one of the cities with the longest life expectancy in the world, singleton elderly and aged couples have become a common social phenomenon in Hong Kong. Over 100,000 seniors, about 10 percent of the total elderly population, are currently living alone, and an upward trend has been observed over the last ten years[1]. Due to insufficient personal care, these elders are at an especially higher risk of encountering home hazards. If they are equipped with home safety knowledge and basic first aid skills, risk of accidents in home can be largely reduced. Launched in 2003, our "5-Star Health, 5-Star Home" Community Health Education Program aims at arousing the public, namely elders’ awareness on personal and public hygiene, household safety and prevention of infectious diseases through a wide range of activities such as health talks and exhibitions.

[1] Hong Kong 2011 Population Census Thematic Report : Older Persons

First aid workshops help clarify first aid myths
A bandage kit and first aid handbook are given to participants of the elderly first aid workshop, encouraging them to refresh their first aid skills and to share their knowledge with families and friends.

"Home safety issues encountered by elders differ from other age groups, thus in our workshops for seniors, we emphasis accidents that are most likely to happen to elders, such as falls, cramps, and fractures. Moreover, since many elders still believe strongly in the "traditional first aid myths", which can only make the wounds worse, clarifications on first aid fallacies is also a focus of our workshops," Mr. Eric Lau, Head of Hong Kong Red Cross’ Healthy & Care Service Department explains.

"When I got burned in the past, I always put soy sauce or toothpaste on the wound. I had been using this method for decades until I was told by the tutor that it was wrong! The appropriate way is to first cooling down the wound with lots of fresh water, then drying it with gauze, and finally wrapping the wound with a bandage," Mr. Chui admitted that he used to treat the wound with the old wives tales and did not know the proper treatment procedures before. Jenny, another participant also said that she only had a smattering of first aid knowledge in the past and had lots of misunderstandings. She once suffered a sprain while walked down the stairs. Told by elders in the family that swelling could be reduced with a heat pad, Jenny rolled over the swollen part with an boiled egg, but worse still the swelling did not reduce at all and even resulted in excessive pain. "Heating pad increases blooding circulation in the injured area and dilated blood vessels, which will only make swelling even more serious!" Jenny continues to explain. "Now I will apply an ice bag to the injured part to reduce swelling. If ice bags are not available, bags of frozen vegetables can also be a good substitute!"

Over the past 14 years, the "5-Star Health, 5-Star Home" Community Health Education Project has attracted about 600,000 participants and reached more than 900,000 households in Tai Po, Tuen Mun, Kwai Tsing, and Wong Tai Sin. In the near future, we hope to further expand the project to other districts and equip more people, especially vulnerable groups that have been neglected by the society, with disaster preparedness knowledge to help prevent accidents and protecting human life all together.

Please donate online or download the donation form. Your donation of HK$500, HK$800 or even HK$1,000, you will help us sustain our local disaster preparedness works and also many other humanitarian services - including local relief services, caring program for home-bound elders, and psychological first aid support, etc.

Lastly, I would like to sincerely thank for your time in reading this letter, I do hope that you will have a deeper understanding on our disaster and emergency preparedness works. I will continue to keep you posted about our other humanitarian services in the upcoming newsletters. Should you require further information on our services or usage of donation, please feel free to contact us at secretarygeneral@redcross.org.hk or at 2802 0016.

Secretary General, Bonnie So Bonnie So Secretary General
Donate now Download Donation Form