Hong Kong’s Deadliest Fire in 70 Years Claims 55 Lives as Search Continues
Hong Kong’s worst fire in seven decades has claimed at least 55 lives, with the death toll expected to rise as emergency crews continue to comb through the ruins of seven burned-out residential blocks at a public-housing estate.
By early Thursday morning, exhausted firefighters were still battling hotspots and sifting through charred debris, searching for hundreds of residents still unaccounted for.
The inferno erupted on Wednesday afternoon and rapidly engulfed the 31-storey towers, driven by strong winds and exacerbated by what investigators now say were highly flammable, non-compliant renovation materials.
Police have arrested three people—two construction company directors and an engineering consultant, aged 52 to 68—on suspicion of manslaughter. Investigators believe renovation practices at Wang Fuk Court allowed the blaze to race up the exterior walls.
“We have reason to believe the individuals responsible were grossly negligent,” said Superintendent Eileen Chung, adding that the materials used contributed directly to the fire’s rapid spread and the resulting heavy casualties.
Officials say the scaffolding mesh, plastic sheeting, and styrofoam used to seal lift windows acted as fuel for the fast-moving flames. These materials have been under a government phase-out order since March.
The fire was escalated to a No. 5 alarm, Hong Kong’s highest severity level. Towering black plumes filled the sky as burning sections of green construction mesh spiraled to the ground.
By Thursday, flames in four of the affected buildings had been extinguished, while the remaining three were reported as “under control,” though conditions remained hazardous.
“The temperature inside the structures is extremely high and debris is still falling,” said Fire Services deputy director Derek Armstrong Chan. “It’s difficult for crews to enter and move upward for rescue operations.”
More than 800 firefighters, 128 fire engines, and 400 police officers have been deployed. Search teams began clearing the lower floors at dawn and expect to work their way up through the day.
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiú visited injured survivors on Thursday, expressing condolences to families of the dead and wounded. He ordered citywide inspections of all public-housing estates currently under renovation and confirmed that a criminal investigation is underway.
Election campaigning for the December 7 Legislative Council poll has been suspended and may be postponed, Lee said.
‘Towering Inferno’ Began on Scaffolding
The fire broke out at 2:51 p.m. Wednesday, igniting along bamboo scaffolding on three blocks before leaping to four others. The eight-tower estate, built in 1983 and home to around 4,000 residents, has been wrapped in scaffolding and green mesh since renovation work began in July last year.
The city has been under a red fire warning all week due to high-risk weather conditions.
Residents report that fire alarms never sounded. Some escaped with only seconds to spare; many others waited anxiously for news of missing family members.
A resident surnamed Fung said he still did not know the whereabouts of his 80-year-old mother-in-law.
Harry Cheung, 66, described hearing “a very loud noise at around 2:45 p.m.” before flames ripped across his building. “I don’t even know how I feel right now. I’m just thinking about where I’m going to sleep tonight.”
A 71-year-old man, surname Wong, wept outside the towers as his wife remained trapped inside.
Another resident, 83-year-old Chan Kwong-tak, said: “If someone was sleeping then, they were done.”
Source: AFP
