BEIJING, June 3 -- Shanghai will amend its emergency plan for public security accidents or natural disasters, city officials said Monday.

    The amendment will focus on improving inter-government department coordination in case of emergency and making preparations more feasible.

    Meanwhile, the city government will also intensify emergency drills in fire control, public transport passenger evacuation and other possible emergencies on regular basis, according to Gai Guoping, head of the city's emergency management office.

    The move came after the Shanghai Committee of the Chinese Political Consultative Conference, the city's top advisory body, launched a series of inspections into the city's public security condition after the devastating earthquake hit Sichuan Province on May 12.

    "The inspection suggested that the city is still subject to hidden dangers and risks of possible public security accidents," said Meng Yankun, a committee official overseeing the construction and environment issues.

    For instance, Shanghai is dotted with thousands of high-rises. But fire control equipment for high-rises is not up to scratch in the city. The city endured the heavy snow period earlier this year which left Shanghai with an economic loss of 900 million yuan (129 million U.S. dollars). It might have been far worse had the snow lingered for two more days, Meng said.

    "The city has an overall emergency preplan and 31 sub-plans for different government departments, but most of the items are so general that it lacks feasibility," Meng said.

    (Source: Shanghai Daily)