Jimmy Yuen article

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Life on the edge
For bomb disposal expert Jimmy Yuen,
risking one’s life is a matter of routine
http://www.com.cuhk.edu.hk/varsity/0403/people_bomb.htm 第 1 頁 / 共 9 2010/6/5 下午 04:36:40

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Lateral thinking is more important than protective
suits, says Jimmy Yuen, bomb expert. (Courtesy
of Jimmy Yuen)
By Winki Kwok
Suspended on an anchor a couple of metres above sea level, he
struggled to neutralize the unexploded World War II aircraft bomb
that had been dragged up by the cargo ship.
His life was at risk. He was sitting atop the anchor, on a slippery, wet,
live bomb that had been discovered by the the ship’s crew when they
weighed anchor.
Jimmy Yuen, 44, the first Chinese bomb disposal officer in Hong
Kong, faced a critical moment.
The American-designed aircraft bomb, which had lain deep beneath
the sea, had been picked up when the ship let go of its anchor. And
Mr. Yuen had to make sure that it did not detonate — under windy
winter conditions.
“The anchor was swinging like a pendulum. I was suspended in the
air, swinging about 2 to 3 feet, left and right. It was a really awkward
environment to be in,” said Mr. Yuen.
Moving the bomb to land was far too dangerous.
Therefore, someone had to be assigned the unenviable job of
climbing onto the anchor and neutralizing the bomb — that is, making
the bomb unable to explode.
Jimmy Yuen was the appointed man.
Because of the way the anchor had picked up the bomb, Mr. Yuen
could not stand on the anchor, so he had to sit on the bomb itself.
While he went about his job, his colleagues, safe in boats surrounding
the ship, looked on encouragingly at him.
Finally, after an hour of struggling, he successfully neutralized the
1,000-pound bomb, which contained 500 pounds of explosives.
Throughout that drama, the bomb disposal expert was not worried
about the bomb exploding beneath him.

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He was more concerned about “falling into the water,” he said.
Working as a senior officer at the Explosive Ordnance Disposal
Bureau, a specialist department of the Hong Kong Police, Mr. Yuen
has over 12 years of experience.
His job requires him to be on duty round the clock, because he does
not have a regular working schedule.
According to Mr. Yuen, the bureau is comprised of four teams, each
team consisting of a senior officer and a junior officer. Mr. Yuen is the
former.
In other words, there are only eight bomb disposal officers in Hong
Kong, and he is one of them.
Their job is not as simple as it seems in the movies, where a bomb
disposal officer simply cuts a wire to stop a bomb from exploding,
says Mr. Yuen.
He said, “That was a technique from the 1950s.
“Now most bomb disposal work is equipment-based.
“Lateral thinking is very important for a good bomb expert.
“There should be more options to inactivate a bomb.
“Cutting wires is the last resort.”
He defines lateral thinking as the ability to brainstorm multiple
solutions for a given problem — which, in his case, is how to
inactivate a bomb.
In this regard, Westerners perform better because of the differences
between the education systems in the West and in Hong Kong,
according to Mr. Yuen.
He said the “exam-oriented and spoon-fed” education system in Hong
Kong makes students’ thinking too simple and direct.
This is one reason why Westerners dominated bomb disposal
activities when he joined the bomb disposal squad in 1988, after 5
years of service in the police force.
The situation changed when the government implemented the
localization of the police force in 1992, in preparation for the 1997
handover. Jobs normally held by Westerners were filled by local
colleagues.
He hesitated when his boss asked him to take up this new position.

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He knew that doing so would mean a lifelong commitment as a bomb
disposal officer.
He would abandon the ladder of police hierarchy if he entered the
specialist unit.
After thorough consideration, he accepted the offer.
“Bomb disposal is my interest. Its specialty and professionalism
attracts me.”
Another consideration was opportunity for promotion. For instance,
he is now a police superintendent, a level that his counterparts on the
police force cannot reach so quickly.
Mr. Yuen also got a chance to go to military academies in the United
Kingdom and Australia for special training.
About 180 bombs are discovered in Hong Kong a year. Each team has
to dispose of 40 to 50 bombs annually. However, in 2001, 495 bombs
were found.
He said, “This was mainly due to large infrastructure [projects], such
as the construction of Disneyland. A lot of pre-war bombs were found
on Lantau Island then.”
Apart from the number of bombs, improvements in bomb quality
have made Mr. Yuen’s job more difficult.
Nowadays, the design of bombs is more complicated than in the past.
“With technology in the past, most of the bombs used fuse
mechanisms. They were very mechanical. Nowadays, the bombs are
mostly electronic or computerized.”
Therefore, he has to keep updating himself on the latest technology
by reading the latest circulars and bulletins.
The police do not provide insurance for him, so a large part of his
salary goes into expensive insurance plans.
Although a bomb disposal officer’s job is dangerous, his family does
not pressure him to quit. However, his wife was initially opposed to
his job. She was his girlfriend at the time.
“One day in July 1992, my girlfriend and I saw on the news that a
Taiwanese bomb disposal expert died while attempting to neutralize a
bomb found in a shop.
“The bomb was as small as an aluminum can. He touched the bomb
and it exploded suddenly.”

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The big bang was impressive.
Mr. Yuen’s girlfriend was worried that he might meet this kind of
accident in the course of his job. However, the confident Mr. Yuen
knew it was not an accident.
“I understood there were many methods to inactivate the bomb.
Unfortunately, he chose the wrong one,” said he.
After explaining the situation to his girlfriend, he got her support.
Jimmy Yuen relies on robots and other equipments to keep
himself safe. (Courtesy of Jimmy Yuen)
Students don’t care for society
By Winki Kwok
Jimmy Yuen was named one of Hong Kong’s Ten Outstanding Young
Persons in 1993. However, he won the award not because of his
professionalism, but because of his active participation in voluntary
services.
He was nominated by the Hong Kong Red Cross and awarded for civic
and social service.
“The award encouraged not only me, but also the other voluntary
workers in Red Cross. It was because our work was recognized.”
He has been with the organization for 30 years.

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Despite his heavy workload, he still spends one or two evenings a
week on volunteer work.
He thinks that tertiary students today don’t care about the
community.
He said, “It may be due to the atmosphere in society. What people
pursue is utility. Tertiary students are no exception. They are not
willing to do something seemingly not beneficial.
“Sometimes they are only willing to participate in ‘piecemeal’
voluntary services, which lack quality.
“For example, the Red Cross has several community care teams. The
team members visit the elderly who live alone, about one or twice a
month.
“Each visit is a very simple task. However, the elderly feel that
someone really cares about them. It is not just the relationship
between voluntary workers and clients, but friendship.
“Unfortunately, tertiary students are not willing to spend time on
voluntary work because they think it is not worthwhile doing so.”
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