Safety guidelines and Emergency measures
Following are the safety guidelines and emergency measures quoted from the booklet “Safety Hints for Hiking in Country Parks”. You can obtain free copies from the Country Parks’ Tourist Centre or download from Here.

Possible Hazards to Hikers
Getting Lost
It is easy to get lost during bad weather or when not properly prepared Safety Guidelines
Pay attention to the current weather bulletin and avoid hiking if the weather is bad.
Choose only maintained paths that are clearly way marked and plan the route before setting out carefully.

Remember to bring all necessities including maps, compass, drinking water, food, torch, rain gear, radio, first-aid kit, whistle, mobile phone, notebook and pen.

Emergency Measures

1. Finding your location with the use of a compass and a map.
2. Recall the route you have covered and retrace your steps to your original position. If this is not possible, Stay Put and wait for rescue.
3. Don't go further; this would waste your energy. If you must advance further, take note of all the paths that you have tried. Avoid steep ravines as, it is not easy to locate oneself in this topography.
4. Head for a high spot if you fail to identify your location. It is easier to identify directions there and to be discovered by the rescue team..
5. In case cold weather sets in but you do not have sufficient warm protective clothing or if thunderstorm or hill fire occur, leave the high spot until the situation improves and go back to the high spot again and wait for rescue.
6. Give out international distress signal. (See paragraph 6.1)

Heat Stroke
Heat stroke is caused by one's inability to regulate body temperature through transpiration at high ambient temperatures. The victim feels hot, dizzy, uneasy and even becomes unconscious. When the temperature exceeds 40C, the victim's skin will be dry and flushed; breath and pulse rate will increase. In some serious cases, the victim will suffer from shock. Lower his body temperature and seek medical assistance right away.
Overheat of the body will also lead to heat exhaustion which usually occurs when one is engaging in sports in hot humid weather, especially when one fails to replenish his body fluid and salt lost through sweating. The symptoms are exhaustion, headache, dizziness, nausea, muscle spasm, paleness, clammy skin, rapid but weak breath and pulse.

Safety Hints

1. Have good rests during the journey. Don't overwork as this would lead to exhaustion.
2. Avoid prolonged exposure to direct sunlight. Drink lots of water.

Emergency Measures

1. Move the victim to a cool shaded place. Remove his clothing and have him lie down with feet elevated; give him lots of fluids if he is conscious. Avoid the victim being surrounded by people. Continue to replenish him with drinks and seek medical treatment right away.
2. If necessary, employ other body-cooling techniques like immersion in water, wetting clothing and fanning until the symptoms disappear.
3. If the victim sweats heavily and convulse, serve him with salt water in the ratio of one tea spoon of salt to one litre of water.

Hypothermia
It is caused by drop of body temperature due to lack of sufficient clothing in a cold place. Even in summer, rapid drop in temperature due to sudden cold rain or rainstorm will also cause hypothermia.

Symptoms

1. Fatigue, exhaustion, clammy skin, stumbling, shivering, muscle spasms, stammering and hallucinating etc.

Safety Guidelines

1. Have a good sleep on the night before the journey. Don't join the journey if you are not feeling well.
2. Have a nutritious meal before setting out. Have high energy food like chocolate during the trip
3. Bring warm protective and rain-proof clothing and a spare set of clothes for change.
4. Rest at intervals; Don't overload yourself with bulky object.
5. Don't overstrain to conserve energy.

Emergency Measures

1. Seek refuge from the rain and change wet clothes right away.
2. Cover your head, face, neck and body with clothing or sleeping bag to keep warm. Take hot drinks and high calorific food to maintain body temperature.

Dengue Fever
Dengue fever is an acute viral disease. The incubation period is 3 to 14 days. Symptoms include high fever for three to five days, severe headache, muscle and joint pain, eye pain, nausea, vomiting and skin rash. In severe cases, the patient may present with bleeding and shock, and can die from the disease. Children normally would have milder symptoms than adults. Dengue virus is transmitted to humans through mosquito bites. There is no person to person spread.

Safety Guidelines

1. Wear long-sleeved clothes and long trousers
2. Use insect repellent over the exposed parts of the body.
3.  

Lightning stroke
Lightning normally strikes at the highest point of an object and the electric current is conducted to the ground via the least resistant path.

Hikers attacked by lightning usually have the symptoms of muscle spasm, scalds, suffocation and cardiac arrest.

Safety Guidelines

1. Listen to the weather bulletin. Avoid hiking when the weather condition is unstable, especially when the thunderstorm warning signal is hoisted.
2. Wear shoes or boots with rubber soles in outdoor areas.

Emergency Measures

1. Don't stand at hilltop or near any object with high conductivity. As trees and poles can easily be striken by lightning, give them a wide berth as far as possible. After striking an object, the electricity current of lightning will spread through the ground. Therefore,
2. Don't lie on the ground, especially wet ground surface. Squat and minimize the contact area with the ground as far as possible.
3. Stay away from iron fences or other metal objects. Don't touch any antenna, water pipes, iron mesh or other similar metal installations. Remove all metal objects (e.g. gold ornaments) from your body.
4. Take shelter in a building whenever possible.
5. Don't swim or engage in other water sports. Leave the water and seek shelter right away.
6. Don't touch any inflammable materials, such as kerosene or liquefied petroleum gas.

Hill fire
Hill fire advances rapidly upward and windward on a steep grass slope in dry weather. Never underestimate its devastating power.

Safety Guidelines

1. Listen to the weather bulletin. If the fire danger warning is red, handle kindling materials with great care.
2. Except at designated barbecue sites or campsites, Never light a fire within country parks. Smokers should refrain from smoking; all cigarette-stubs or matches should be totally extinguished before discarding into litter boxes.
3. Hill fire is difficult to detect in daytime. Always pay attention to flying ashes or burnt smell. If a hill fire is spotted, leave the fire scene right away.
4. It is difficult to assess the spreading of hillfire. Don't risk continuing your journey in case of a fire nearby or you may get trapped in the fire.

Emergency Measures

1. Don't panic and keep calm.
2. Never attempt to attend a hill fire indiscriminately.

Note the following for a quick evacuation from the scene of fire:

1. The direction in which the fire spreads - avoid escaping in the same direction of the prevailing wind
2. The height and density of the vegetation nearby - Find a place with less vegetation for escape.
3. The gradient of the paths nearby - Choose the one which is easiest for escape.
4. It is easier and quicker to escape through existing paths.
5. If the fire is imminent and there is no way out, you should cover your exposed skin with wet clothing and then make for the burnt area. This can minimize the chance of getting injured.
6. Never run uphill if the situation permits.
7. Don't run into shrubs or grass grown area, fire usually spreads rapidly and the temperature may soar in these areas..

Mountain Torrent
The devastating power and speed of mountain torrent should never be underestimated. A small stream may swell and converge into raging torrents in heavy rain and wash away travelers, resulting in casualties within minutes.

Safety Guidelines

1. Listen to the weather bulletin. Avoid hiking when the weather is unstable, especially when the rainstorm warning signal is hoisted.
2. Don't hike along a water course when it rains. Leave the water course without delay and head for a high spot ashore.
3. Don't stay at the water course for a rest, especially at its lower reaches.
4. Don't wade in the stream after heavy rain.
5. Never attempt to cross any inundated bridges. In case of heavy rain, leave the water course right away.

Emergency Measures

1. Rapid flows, turbid water with sand and mud are early signs of torrents. Leave the water course without delay.
2. If you fall into a rapid flow, grip or hold on to the rocks, branches or vines near the banks; try to get ashore and leave the river course right away.

Landslide
Landslides are not uncommon when a large amount of rainwater has soaked a natural or artificial slope during a downpour or after a few days of heavy rain.

Safety Guidelines

1. Avoid going near or staying around steep slopes during heavy rain or after a few days of heavy rain.
2. The oozing out of a large quantity of muddy water from the base or the weep holes of a slope indicates that the slope is saturated with water. Exposure of inner soil of the slope and appearance of new cracks on the slope are early signs of a landslide. Keep away from such slopes.
3. Don't proceed by stepping on loose mud if landslide blocks your way; retreat or seek another safe route to leave the scene right away.

Emergency Measures

1. Unless you are fully equipped and properly trained, Don't try to resume life buried in a landslide. You should call for a fully equipped rescue team to avoid further casualties.

International Distress Signals
Send out six long blasts within one minute; pause for one minute and repeat the same. Don't stop until the rescue team comes (keep on giving out the signals even if the rescue team has discovered you from a far distance so that the rescuers can identify your exact position).

Ways of sending signals:

1. Blowing a whistle
2. Reflecting light with a mirror or metal sheet
3. Flashing with your torch light at night
4. Waving colorful or shiny clothes to attract attention

SOS Distress Signal
If possible, use stones or tree branches to form the characters of SOS (Save Our Soul) on a flat and open space.

Preserve our land, Love our countryside
We strongly recommend you to follow the rules below to preserve our countryside:

Use only paths that are clearly way-marked and maintained

1. Each step your feet are walking on the plants and are possibly hurting them, please use only paths that are clearly way-marked and maintained so to reduce the affect.
2. Please do not take rest in the middle of the route because you may block the other participants’ road.

Be Environmental Friendly

1. Please do not litter on the route. Please collect your rubbish and litter it in the main road’s rubbish bin or recycle bin afterwards
2. Plan and bring enough but not excess belongings and lunch, reduce the waste as much as possible
3. To be environmental friendly, reduce the use of disposable utensils and plastic bags
4. Please do not leave any batteries in the countryside. The chemical inside may leak out and harm the habitat of the countryside.