Safety first as HKCEC toilets get smarter

All 61 accessible toilets at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre will be equipped with a new AI life sense alert system by the end of this month to improve visitors' safety.

The Centre (Management) Limited (HML) said yesterday the first phase of the system's installation in 10 accessible toilets at the center has been completed, with the remaining 51 slated to be completed by the end of July.

The system will be able to detect the toilet user's posture: whether he or she is active or static, seated or lying down. It will also be able to collect motions for AI-enabled analysis to identify if a fall or accident has occurred or if the toilet user has become motionless.

In the event of an identified accident, the system will send an alert within five seconds through hand-held devices such as mobile phones or tablets, enabling staff to locate the toilet and arrive to provide assistance as quickly as possible.

The security control room will also receive the alerts for the prompt deployment of additional manpower if necessary.

The system also provides humidity, temperature and air quality readings, facilitating environment monitoring in the accessible toilets and the adjustment of cleaning frequencies to enhance visitor experience.

HML managing director Monica Lee-Muller said: "Investing in and applying technology to upgrade HKCEC's hardware and software has been a continuous focus of HML.

"With safety of our visitors being our first and foremost priority, we have taken the precautionary move to introduce the AI Life Sense Alert System so that our staff can provide timely assistance to visitors in distress during an emergency," she said.

"The key is to reach the visitors in need as soon as possible so as not to miss the golden hour between life and death."

The installation came following incidents including the death of a 66-year-old man who was found unconscious inside an accessible toilet in the concourse at Hung Hom Station and later certified dead in July last year. It took MTR staff almost four hours to locate the man after being alerted.

The man's son criticized the MTR's negligence that delayed help for his father, requesting an apology and a formal inquiry from the railway company.

Similar AI life sense alert systems have already been introduced to the city's public hospitals, including United Christian Hospital, as well as some public places such as Central Market, Cyberport, Yue Man Square and Olympian City.

In a reply to The Standard, MTRC said motion sensors had been installed in over 90 accessible toilets across its rail lines by last October.

The sensor will send an alert to the station when the user has no movement for a while or has occupied the toilet for a long time.