The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, encouraged the community to work in unity in order to ensure the resumption of normal life after Typhoon Hato, and make Macao a better home for all.

Mr Chui pledged the Government would spare no effort in speeding up the process of dealing with the aftermath of Typhoon Hato. The strongest recorded storm in Macao for 53 years hit the city last week, causing 10 human fatalities and injuring 244 people as well as resulting in enormous economic losses.

Mr Chui’s remarks were delivered in his online column “Words from the Chief Executive” published on Tuesday (29 August).

Mr Chui expressed his sincere gratitude to members of the public that had been working shoulder to shoulder with the Government and the People’s Liberation Army Macao Garrison in the relief effort. Their selfless assistance illustrated Macao’s spirit of unity, which enabled its citizens to ride out difficulties and help each other during this critical time.

Pondering the passage of a week since the typhoon, Mr Chui said he felt indescribable sadness in recalling the destruction brought by the storm to the city where he had grown up. He conveyed his deepest condolences to the families of those people that died during the storm.

Macao is situated in the west of the Pearl River Delta and experiences storms every year. The community, including the Government, did not expect such extreme conditions as those created by Typhoon Hato, despite a number of precautionary measures that had been taken to mitigate the impact by the storm. The typhoon has raised awareness of some problems regarding the release of meteorological information, warnings of disasters, and promotion of safety awareness.

The Government has been reviewing its mechanism system to handle natural disasters. On Monday (28 August), the Commission for Reviewing and Monitoring the Improvements of the Response Mechanism to Major Disasters was set up to conduct a complete review of the existing system for handling emergencies.

During the Commission meeting on Monday, Mr Chui directed the departments under the Secretary for Transport and Public Works to carry out a complete review in relation to public utilities and the city’s infrastructure.

In his online column, Mr Chui stated the Government was paying close attention to opinions in the community regarding post-typhoon relief work and the response mechanism system for major disasters. This would serve as a reference point for the Government in its effort to strengthen the response to any future disasters.