A terrible fire has destroyed a public housing complex in Hong Kong's Tai Po district, killing at least 75 people. This is the city's worst fire in more than 70 years. The fire started at Wang Fuk Court on Wednesday afternoon and quickly spread to seven of the eight residential towers. The buildings were covered in bamboo scaffolding and nets because they were being renovated. After burning for over a day, the fire is now mostly under control. However, the damage is enormous, with 76 people injured and hundreds originally reported missing.
Investigators are trying to understand how the fire could spread so quickly between tall buildings. Officials believe the renovation materials, such as plastic sheets and foam, which were wrapped around the buildings, helped the fire grow. Dangerous conditions, including extreme heat and falling scaffolding, made rescue work very difficult. Sadly, a 37-year-old firefighter, Ho Wai-ho, lost his life, and ten of his colleagues were hurt. Despite these dangers, emergency teams used 128 fire engines and almost 800 workers to save 55 people.
The police reacted quickly, arresting three people connected to the renovation company, Prestige Construction and Engineering. A senior police officer, Eileen Chung, said the company's managers are suspected of being extremely careless, which may have allowed the fire to spread and cause many deaths. At the same time, the city's leader, John Lee, ordered immediate safety checks on all buildings with similar renovations and plans to stop using bamboo scaffolding.
The community is now full of pain and anger. Stories from survivors conflict with official safety claims. Several people said the fire alarms did not sound when the fire began. One resident, Lawrence Lee, described how his wife tried to escape: "Once she left the flat, the corridor and stairs were all filled with smoke, and it was all dark, so she had no choice but to go back." These accounts have increased existing worries among residents about whether the renovation work followed fire safety rules.
As the anti-corruption agency begins its own investigation, this disaster has shown serious weaknesses in city safety. For the more than 900 survivors now in temporary shelters and for a city in mourning, this fire is a tragic reminder of the deadly results of possible negligence.