Ching Ming's burning with over 30 hill fire reports made to firefighters

Firefighters were called to combat over 30 hill fires as descendants headed out to pay their respects to their ancestors on Ching Ming Festival.

On the day of Ching Ming (Thu), a lot of families headed up the mountains to practice their tomb sweeping rituals. However, with the Yellow Fire Danger Warning in place, fires erupted across the hills of Hong Kong.

Up until 4 pm the fire service department had received 30 reports of hill fires, with most of them located in the New Territories West and South. 

Among them, a mountain fire broke out at 2 pm on the hillside off Lin Ma Hang Road in Sha Tau Kok, with a line of fire that measured about 100 meters long.

In addition, a mountain fire broke out atop of Wa Shan in Sheung Shui at 1 pm, with two lines of fire measuring about 30 meters long.

The Flying Service also sent a helicopter to the scene to collect water from a nearby river in efforts to aid putting out the fire.

The fire service department reminds the public that the firefighters are currently fighting fires in multiple locations and urge residents to be careful when clearing tombs and avoid leaving embers.

They also told them to be calm when facing hill fires and to find a location with few plants when evacuating the area.