Chief Secretary for Administration Henry Tang yesterday vowed that the government will do everything to restore road access and water supply to Tai O, which has been virtually sealed off by rainstorms since last Saturday.

A boy rides a bicycle past a van trapped in the mud in Tao O yesterday. China Daily

"Our priority is to survey the slopes in Tai O over the next two days to ensure the safety of villagers," he said.

The Water Supplies Department is also doing everything they can to resume water supply.

In the meantime, the government is providing water by boats to local residents , who received 1,000 bottles of 5-liter water yesterday.

The government has been supplying residents of remote villages with daily necessities, according to Tang.

Among these villages is Sum Wat Village where the government airdropped on Monday some drinking water and other supplies.

Secretary for Home Affairs Tsang Tak-shing said the Home Affairs Bureau will provide 300 flats in Tung Chung as temporary homes for Tai O residents who do not want to stay in the isolated town.

Tang said the temporary homes give residents a choice, though he said less people will want to leave Tai O after water supply resumes.

Secretary for Development Carrie Lam said their immediate work is to minimize the danger of landslides to Tai O residents.

Observations from helicopters on Monday revealed that over 400 slopes have been damaged.

"We will have a great deal of survey and conservation work to do in the future," she said.

Director of Highways Wai Chi-sing said Tai O residents might be able to see the reopening of part of the road in two weeks after they finish road-strengthening work.

Islands District Officer Byron Lam said they have visited all villages since the rainstorms and they will keep communicating with villagers.

Meanwhile, Lam revealed that one-third of the slope on Castle Peak Road, where two people were killed last Saturday in a retaining wall collapse, is owned by the Lands Department.

In the most recent yearly inspection in April, the Lands Department has not found any immediate problem with the slope.

In the last detailed check, the Lands Department has found that the slope needed some strengthening work and had scheduled it next month.

"But this does not mean the slope posed any immediate danger. And it does not mean the strengthening work could have stopped the tragedy from happening either ," Lam stressed.

K S Chan, head of the Geotechnical Engineering Office, Civil Engineering and Development Department, said they have started an in-depth study on the cause of the retaining wall collapse.

(HK Edition 06/11/2008 page1)