FUNERAL PARLOUR (URBAN COUNCIL) BY-LAWS

FUNERAL PARLOUR (URBAN COUNCIL) BY-LAWS

FUNERAL PARLOUR (URBAN COUNCIL) BY-LAWS

ARRANGEMENT OF BY-LAWS

By-law Page

1. Citation ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 2
2. Application ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 2
3. Interpretation ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 2
4. Licensing of funeral parlour businesses ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 3
5. Requirements as to posting of licensees' names, etc. ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 3
6. Posting of notices prohibiting spitting, etc. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 3
7. Funeral parlours to comply with certain provisions ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 3
8. Embalming, etc . ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 5
9. Reception and retention of human remains ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 5
10. Bodies of persons dying while suffering from quarantinable diseases ... ... ... AE 5
11. Use of rubber gloves, etc . ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 5
12. Cleanliness of premises ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 5

13. Registers ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 5
14. Offences and penalties ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... AE 6
15. Name in which proceedings for offences may be brought ... ... ... ... ... AE 7





7

FUNERAL PARLOUR (URBAN COUNCIL) BY-LAWS

(Cap. 132, section 123)

[23 December 1960.1

1. These by-laws may be cited as the Funeral Parlour (Urban
Council) By-laws.

2. These by-laws apply to the Urban Council area only.

3. In these by-laws, unless the context otherwise requires-

'body' means the dead body or part thereof of any human being or any
still-born child, but does not include ashes resulting from the
cremation thereof,

'burial' includes cremation;

'Council' means the Urban Council;

'funeral parlour' means a mortuary, but does not include

(a)the Tung Wah Hospital Repository situated at Sandy Bay,
Hong Kong;

(b)any place set apart under the provisions of the Coroners
Ordinance for the reception of dead bodies for the purpose of
post mortem examination;

(c)any mortuary situated within the precincts of any hospital or
similar institution which is maintained or controlled by the
Crown or by the University of Hong Kong provided for by the
University of Hong Kong Ordinance;

(d)any mortuary situated within the precincts of any hospital
carried on by a person duly registered in respect thereof under
the Hospitals, Nursing Homes and Maternity Homes
Registration Ordinance;

(e)any mortuary which is designed as a public funeral hall under
section 123A; or

any place set apart for the purpose of washing dead bodies in
accordance with Islamic rites at

(i) the Masjid Ammar & Osman Ramju Sadick Islamic Centre
at 40 Oi Kwan Road, Hong Kong;

(ii) the Muslim Cemetery, Cape Collinson, Hong Kong; or

(iii) the Muslim Cemetery, Happy Valley, Hong Kong, prior
to burial;

'quarantinable disease' has the meaning assigned to it by section 2
of the Quarantine and Prevention of Disease Ordinance.





4. (1) Save under and in accordance with a licence granted by the
Council, no person shall carry on the business of a funeral parlour.

(2)Every such licence shall expire annually on 31 December.

(3) The grant or renewal of any such licence shall be subject to
the payment in advance to the Council of a fee of$15,750

Provided that, where any such licence is granted after 30 June in
any year, the fee payable in respect of the grant of that licence shall be
one-half of the prescribed fee.

5. The licensee of every funeral parlour shall cause his name to be
posted, in English lettering and Chinese characters not less than 100 mm
in height, in a conspicuous place on the outside wall or door of the
premises to which his licence relates.

6. The licensee of every funeral parlour shall cause-

(a)not less than 1 notice, which shall be written in English
lettering and Chinese characters of such size as to be clearly
visible from a distance of 2 in, prohibiting spitting, except into
a spittoon or other receptacle provided for the purpose, to be
posted in every room of the funeral parlour to which members
of the public have access; and

(b)every such room to be provided with a sufficient number of
spittoons or other suitable receptacles to the satisfaction of
the Council.

7. The following provisions shall apply to every funeral parlour

(a)every part of the premises shall be adequately lighted and
ventilated to the satisfaction of the Council, either by natural
means or mechanical means or partly by natural means and
partly by mechanical means;

(b)no part of the premises shall have direct access to any
premises used for domestic purposes or to any premises not
wholly concerned with and used for the purposes of the
funeral parlour; and

(c)not less than 1 room shall be used exclusively for the purpose
of embalming any body or preparing any body for burial,
encoffining or cremation, and every such room shall comply
with the following requirements

(i) a rectangular area of floor space, not less than 3.0 x 4.5
in, shall be provided for each embalming or preparation table
installed in the room;

(ii) the floor shall be surfaced with smooth non-absorbent
material and the junction between the walls and the floor shall
be coved;





(iii) the floor shall be laid with proper falls so that liquid may
drain towards one or more vents in the walls of the room, and
each such vent shall be so constructed as to discharge by
way of a covered surface channel of waste pipe into one or
more trapped gullies situated in the open air and within the
curtilage of the funeral parlour and shall, at all times, be
protected by a removable grating;

(iv) the internal surface of the walls shall be tiled or faced
with smooth impervious material to a height of not less than 2
m;

(v) ventilation of the room in compliance with paragraph (a)
shall be by a separate system of ventilation which has direct
access to the open air and does not connect with or give or
have access to any room in, or the means of ventilation of any
other part of, the premises;

(vi) no window shall open, and no exhaust fan shall
discharge, otherwise than directly into the open air at a height
above ground level of not less than 2 m and so as to ensure
that no nuisance is caused to any neighbouring or adjoining
premises or in any public place;

(vii) every door shall be fitted with a self-closing device
and screened or otherwise rendered fly-proof, and every
window shall be screened or otherwise rendered fly-proof,

(viii) every door opening into any part of the premises to
which the public have access shall be clearly marked on the
outside in English and Chinese

'NO ADMITTANCE

(ix) not less than 1 embalming or preparation table shall be
provided therein;

(x) the surface of every embalming or preparation table shall
be not less than 2 100 x 750 mm, and every such table shall be
so sited in the room as to leave an unobstructed space of not
less than 600 mm on every side thereof,

(xi) every such table shall be constructed of or lined with
smooth impervious material and shall be fitted with a raised
edge on every side not less than 50 mm in height, and the
whole table shall slope towards one end so as to drain any
liquid falling thereon towards a waste pipe or channel so
constructed as to lead into the vents required by the
provisions of sub-paragraph (iii) to be provided;

(xii) in respect of each such table, there shall be provided 1
washhand basin of glazed stone ware, which shall be supplied
with water from the public mains or from such other source as
the Council may approve and drain either into the vents
required by the provisions of sub-paragraph (iii) to be
provided or into a trapped gully situated in the open air and
within the curtilage of the funeral parlour; and





(xiii) 1 tap therein shall be so constructed that hose-pipe
may be fitted thereto so as to enable every part of the room to
be hosed down as necessary, and a hose-pipe suitable for
such purpose shall be kept available at all times.

8. (1) No body shall be embalmed or prepared for burial,
encoffining or cremation in any funeral parlour otherwise than in a room
used exclusively for such purpose.

(2) At all times during which any body is retained in any such
room, the windows thereof shall be kept fully opened and, if the room is
ventilated wholly or partly by mechanical means, the ventilating system
shall be kept in operation provided that where an air-conditioning
system is installed which services such a room, the windows thereof
shall be kept closed and the air-conditioning system shall be kept in
operation.

9. (1) No body in an advanced state of decomposition shall be
received into any funeral parlour unless encoffined in a hermetically
sealed coffin.

(2) No body shall be retained in any funeral parlour for a longer
period than 48 hours unless the same is encoffined in a hermetically
sealed coffin or is embalmed.

(3) Save with the permission in writing of the Director of Urban
Services, no human remains whatsoever shall be retained in any funeral
parlour for longer than 7 days.

10. Where it appears to the licensee of any funeral parlour that the
body of any person who has died while suffering from any
quarantinable disease has been received into such funeral parlour, he
shall forthwith notify a health officer or health inspector of the fact.

11. (1) No person shall handle, or carry out any process of
embalming, preparing or treating, the body of any person who, to the
knowledge or belief of such person or of the licensee of the funeral
parlour, died while suffering from a quarantinable disease, unless he is
wearing a rubber apron, or other protective clothing of a type approved
by the Council, and rubber gloves.

(2) Any such rubber apron, protective clothing and rubber gloves
shall be disinfected immediately after the same has been used.

12. The licensee of any funeral parlour shall, at all times, keep the
premises, including all fittings, equipment, furniture, utensils and
apparatus therein, in a clean and sanitary condition to the satisfaction
of the Council.

13. (1) The licensee of any funeral parlour shall keep a register in
English or Chinese in which shall be recorded the following particulars





(a) the name and address of the deceased;

(b) the age or approximate age of the deceased;

(e) the sex of the deceased;

(d) the date, place and cause of the death of the deceased;

(e)the date on, and the time at, which the remains of the
deceased were received into the funeral parlour;

the date on, and the time at, which such remains were
removed from the funeral parlour;

(g)the date and number of the death certificate and of any permit
for the burial, cremation, import to or removal from Hong
Kong, as the case may be, of such remains;

(h)the name and address of the medical practitioner (if any) who
certified as to the death of the deceased, and of the person
signing any permit for burial, cremation, import to or removal
from Hong Kong, as the case may be, of such remains;

(i)the name and address of the person (if any) who has
undertaken to pay the charges (if any) of the funeral parlour;

(j) the method by which, and, as appropriate-

(i) the cemetery and space plot or grave number; or
(ii) the crematorium,

where, such remains were finally disposed of after removal
from the funeral parlour; and

(k)where the deceased died from any quarantinable disease,
whether or not those parts of the funeral parlour in which
such remains were kept were disinfected after such remains
were removed therefrom.

(2) The licensee of a funeral parlour shall cause the register kept by
him under paragraph (1) to be open for inspection at all reasonable
hours by any public officer authorized in writing by the Director of
Urban Services for the purposes of this by-law, or any health officer,
health inspector, police officer or member of the Council.

14. (1) Any person who contravenes the provisions of by-law 4(1)
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction
to a fine of $2,000 and to imprisonment for 6 months.

(2) In the event of a contravention of any of the provisions of
by-law 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 or 13, the licensee of the funeral
parlour shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary
conviction to a fine of where the offence is a continuing
offence, shall be liable in addition to a fine of $10 each day during
which it is proved to the satisfaction of the court that the offence has
continued.





15. Without prejudice to the provisions of any other enact-
ment relating to the prosecution of criminal offences and without
prejudice to the powers of the Attorney General in relation to the
prosecution of such offences, prosecutions for an offence under any
of the provisions of these by-laws may be brought in the name of the
Council.
G.N.A. 157/60. 57 of 1967. L.N. 51/70. 21 of 1973. L.N. 235/74. L.N. 291/77. L.N. 71/78. L.N. 89/79. L.N. 73/80. L.N. 91/81. L.N. 98/83. L.N. 310/83. 10 of 1986. Citation. 10 of 1986, s. 32(2). Application. 10 of 1986, s. 32(2). Interpretation. L.N. 235/74. L.N. 71/78. 59 of 1967, Sch. (Cap. 14.) (Cap. 1053.) L.N. 51/70. (Cap. 165.) L.N. 71/78. L.N. 310/83. (Cap. 141.) Licensing of funeral parlour business. 21 of 1973, s. 20. L.N. 98/83. Requirements as to posting of licensees' names, etc. L.N. 89/79. Posting of notices prohibiting spitting, etc. L.N. 89/79. Funeral parlours to comply with certain provisions. L.N. 89/79. L.N. 235/74. L.N. 235/74. Embalming, etc. L.N. 71/78. Reception and retention of human remains. Bodies of persons dying while suffering from quarantinable diseases. L.N. 51/70. L.N. 235/74. Use of rubber gloves, etc. Cleanliness of premises. Registers. L.N. 235/74. 10 of 1986, s. 32(2). 10 of 1986, s. 32(2). Offences and penalties. L.N. 235/74. Name in which proceedings for offences may be brought.

G.N.A. 157/60. 57 of 1967. L.N. 51/70. 21 of 1973. L.N. 235/74. L.N. 291/77. L.N. 71/78. L.N. 89/79. L.N. 73/80. L.N. 91/81. L.N. 98/83. L.N. 310/83. 10 of 1986. Citation. 10 of 1986, s. 32(2). Application. 10 of 1986, s. 32(2). Interpretation. L.N. 235/74. L.N. 71/78. 59 of 1967, Sch. (Cap. 14.) (Cap. 1053.) L.N. 51/70. (Cap. 165.) L.N. 71/78. L.N. 310/83. (Cap. 141.) Licensing of funeral parlour business. 21 of 1973, s. 20. L.N. 98/83. Requirements as to posting of licensees' names, etc. L.N. 89/79. Posting of notices prohibiting spitting, etc. L.N. 89/79. Funeral parlours to comply with certain provisions. L.N. 89/79. L.N. 235/74. L.N. 235/74. Embalming, etc. L.N. 71/78. Reception and retention of human remains. Bodies of persons dying while suffering from quarantinable diseases. L.N. 51/70. L.N. 235/74. Use of rubber gloves, etc. Cleanliness of premises. Registers. L.N. 235/74. 10 of 1986, s. 32(2). 10 of 1986, s. 32(2). Offences and penalties. L.N. 235/74. Name in which proceedings for offences may be brought.

https://oelawhk.lib.hku.hk/items/show/2592

1964

v10

132

7