Daijiworld Media Network - Hong Kong
Hong Kong, Nov 28: The death toll from the massive fire that ripped through a high-rise residential complex in Hong Kong has risen to 128, authorities confirmed on Friday, as rescue teams continued to uncover more victims from the charred towers of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po district.
Secretary for Security Chris Tang, speaking at the scene, said search operations were still ongoing and warned that the number of casualties could increase further. The fire, which erupted on Wednesday afternoon, was fully extinguished only on Friday morning after nearly two days of relentless firefighting.
More than 1,000 firefighters battled the blaze, which spread rapidly across seven of the complex’s eight towers after bamboo scaffolding wrapped in renovation netting caught fire. The blaze escalated into a five-alarm emergency, with smoke continuing to drift from the burnt-out buildings on Friday due to sporadic flare-ups.
Deputy Director of Fire Services Derek Armstrong Chan said teams were prioritising apartments from which they had received 25 unanswered rescue calls. Most of these units were on the upper floors, where the fire burned the longest. He stressed that crews would “force entry into all units” to ensure no victims were overlooked.
Authorities said they had been unable to contact 279 residents as of early Thursday. The complex, built in the 1980s and home to nearly 4,800 people across 2,000 apartments, housed many elderly residents.
More than 70 people, including 11 firefighters, were injured in the incident, while around 900 displaced residents have been moved to temporary shelters. Officials said most casualties were from the first two towers engulfed in flames.
The city’s anti-corruption body has launched an investigation into the renovation project underway at the time of the fire. Three men — directors and an engineering consultant of a construction firm — have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter. Police suspect gross negligence and believe some exterior materials did not meet fire-resistance standards, contributing to the unusually rapid spread.
Investigators also found plastic foam panels — highly flammable — installed near elevator lobbies of one tower, though their purpose remains unclear.
Authorities have ordered immediate inspections of other housing estates undergoing large-scale renovations to verify that all scaffolding and construction materials comply with safety norms.
The tragedy is the deadliest fire Hong Kong has witnessed in decades. The last major incident of similar scale dates back to 1996, when a blaze in Kowloon claimed 41 lives.