HKPL showcases diverse e-resources at Hong Kong Book Fair
The Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL) has set up a booth at the Hong Kong Book Fair 2025, which is being held from today (July 16) to July 22 at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, to introduce the HKPL's rich e-resources under the theme "Zoom/LIBRARY".
The booth is located at A32 in Hall 1C on 1/F. Members of the public can experience the online services and e-resources of the HKPL through touchscreen displays and tablets in the booth. They can also enjoy the audio programmes of selected books from the podcast channel of the HKPL, "24/7 Story Pavilion". There are also special photo-taking spots, including some about Hong Kong's historic sites related to the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. Visitors who upload a photo taken at the spots to social media platforms can redeem a souvenir on-site, while stocks last.
The HKPL has a number of rich electronic collections. Patrons can access a variety of Chinese and English e-books and e-magazines through electronic collections of Kono Libraries, OverDrive and Flipster, as well as a wide range of business and economic journals and scholarly dissertations in the ProQuest Business Collection. The e-book database Boundless by Baker & Taylor provides English e-books and audiobooks suitable for adults, teenagers and children. Parents can enjoy reading time with children utilising Chinese books in the FunPark e-book collection, and cultivate their children's reading habits and language skills.
In addition, Chinese books suitable for people of different ages are available in the popular SUEP e-book database, which provides audiobooks of Jin Yong's martial arts novels, works of renowned Hong Kong writers and more. The "Popular Good Reads@SUEP" series in the database selects popular books of diverse subjects for patrons to enjoy trending works in the comfort of their homes.
The selection of locally published e-books in the "Pop-up e-Book" page of the HKPL website (www.hkpl.gov.hk/en/collections/pop-up-e-book.html) is updated quarterly. Members of the public can experience the convenience and joy of e-reading with book titles from areas of literature, fiction, lifestyle, children's books and others, without the requirement of logging into a library account.
The HKPL provides over 550 000 e-books and 80 e-databases. Members of the public can log in to their library accounts to read online or download content to computers and mobile devices for e-reading. Hong Kong residents who have never applied for library cards or HKPL e-accounts can visit the HKPL's website to apply for e-accounts and enjoy immediate access to the diverse e-resources.
Please visit the HKPL's booth at the fair or visit www.hkpl.gov.hk/en/e-resources/index.html to know more about the e-resources. More latest information of the HKPL is also available at the "Reading is Joyful" Facebook page (www.facebook.com/readingisjoyful) and Instagram page (www.instagram.com/readingisjoyful).
HKPL showcases diverse e-resources at Hong Kong Book Fair Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
HKPL showcases diverse e-resources at Hong Kong Book Fair Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
HKPL showcases diverse e-resources at Hong Kong Book Fair Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Government announces updates on follow-up work on Tai Po fire
The three task forces set up by the Government for the fire at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po - the Task Force on Investigation and Regulation, the Task Force on Emergency Support and Fund-Raising, and the Task Force on Emergency Accommodation Arrangements - are making full efforts to follow up on the support, relief, and investigation work related to the incident. Details are as follows:
Financial and welfare support
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For the Support Fund for Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, established by the Government, donations received are about $3.5 billion as of noon today (December 17). With the start-up capital of $300 million from the Government, the fund's total has now reached around $3.8 billion. The fund will be used to assist residents in rebuilding their homes and providing long-term and sustained support.
The Government earlier announced that a living allowance from the Support Fund will be provided to each affected household, and the amount has been increased from $50,000 to $100,000. As of today, 1 917 cases have been processed. In addition, the Government will provide families of each deceased victim with a token of solidarity of $200,000, as well as $50,000 to cover funeral costs. As of today, a total of 134 cases have been processed. The allowance will be disbursed in phases.
Social workers from the Social Welfare Department (SWD) have been in contact with more than 1 980 affected households, providing the "one social worker per household" follow-up service to more than 4 900 residents. The SWD will maintain liaison with the affected households to provide all necessary assistance while fully supporting the relief work of the Government.
Accommodation support
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As of this morning, a total of 632 residents are staying in hotel rooms through the co-ordination of the Home and Youth Affairs Bureau, and 548 residents are staying in youth hostels/camps. Another 3 439 residents are currently living in transitional housing units provided by the Housing Bureau, units from the Hong Kong Housing Society (HKHS) or Po Tin Interim Housing in Tuen Mun.
Currently, there is still an abundant supply of more than 1 000 units that can provide affected residents with longer term accommodation. The transitional housing and HKHS projects in different districts can altogether provide around 400 units at the moment. Besides, Po Tin Interim Housing in Tuen Mun and Runway 1331 at Kai Tak can provide a supply of around 900 units.
Meanwhile, the Housing Bureau and the Transport Department have been working closely with the operating organisations and public transport service providers to deploy additional vehicles and manpower to support affected residents who have been admitted into transitional housing and HKHS projects in various districts and to cater for residents' commuting needs. Among the projects, an additional residents' service (RS) NR540 to and from Good House in Tai Po and Tai Po Market Station, as well as shuttle bus services connecting Good House, Tai Po Centre and Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital have been launched; the existing RS NR50 to and from Trackside Villas in Tai Po and Tai Po Market Station has been enhanced; a supplementary RS NR976 has been introduced connecting The STEP in Yuen Long and Tai Po Market Station.
Relief supplies and donations
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Thesupplies donation online platform, established by the Government and the information technology sector, continues to operate, facilitating the registration of supplies donations from organisations and the public. The Government has so far received over 1 900 registrations, of which approximately 30 per cent were submitted by organisations, whereas the others were contributed by the public. The various registered donation items include food and beverages, clothing, daily necessities, bedding, and electrical appliances. The Government is actively assessing residents' actual needs through the relevant policy bureau, government departments, and service organisations for the matching of donated supplies in order to distribute appropriate items in phases to places in need. So far, over 25 000 donation items covering various categories have been distributed to different places. The matching and distribution of supplies will continue.
Regulation and inspection work
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The Independent Checking Unit of the Housing Bureau and the Housing Department will continue to deploy manpower in Wang Fuk Court to assist the removal of items such as scaffolding and protective nets at some of the affected buildings so as to facilitate the evidence collection by the Police.
Source: AI-found images
