A devastating fire that erupted in a Hong Kong residential complex has claimed 44 lives and left hundreds missing in one of the city's deadliest disasters in decades. The inferno rapidly consumed multiple high-rise buildings, trapping residents and overwhelming emergency services.
The Rapid Spread of Destruction
The tragedy began around 2:51 p.m. on a sunny Wednesday afternoon when flames were first spotted climbing the bamboo scaffolding and green netting encasing the 31-story Wang Cheong House in northeastern Hong Kong's Tai Po district. Fanned by strong continental winds, the fire leaped from block to block within hours across the waterfront residential complex.
Soon, seven of the eight towers in Wang Fuk Court were ablaze, with black smoke darkening the skies. The complex contained approximately 2,000 apartments housing about 5,000 people, creating a massive evacuation challenge as residents scrambled to safety.
With no fire alarms sounding, many residents received urgent calls from relatives elsewhere urging immediate evacuation. Others rushed back to the site after hearing news from friends. Particularly vulnerable were elderly residents in wheelchairs who struggled to escape the rapidly spreading flames.
Desperate Rescue Efforts and Trapped Residents
As hundreds of firefighters battled the inferno, trapped residents made desperate calls to emergency services. The intense heat prevented rescue workers from entering some buildings as flames continued traveling upward. At 6:22 p.m., the government raised the fire alarm to the maximum No. 5 level for the first time in 17 years.
The fires burned relentlessly through the night, consuming each floor in turn. By Thursday morning, firefighters had extinguished flames in four of the seven affected buildings but couldn't safely access higher floors in the remaining burning structures.
The current death toll stands at 44 victims, including one firefighter, with another 45 people hospitalized in serious condition. Approximately 279 residents remain missing, raising concerns that the final death count could be significantly higher.
Safety Standards Under Scrutiny
Police have arrested two directors and an engineering consultant of the construction company responsible for renovation works. Senior Superintendent Eileen Chung stated that "gross negligence" likely contributed to the fire's rapid spread and serious casualties.
Security Secretary Chris Tang noted that the protective netting and materials burned far more intensely than compliant materials normally would, describing this as "unusual". The incident has raised serious questions about bamboo scaffolding safety, despite government announcements earlier this year about increasing metal scaffolding requirements.
Wang Fuk Court was built in 1983 as subsidized housing and was undergoing renovations by Prestige Construction & Engineering Co., a registered contractor hired by the complex's incorporated owners.
The disaster represents one of the biggest challenges for Chief Executive John Lee since taking office in 2022. Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged all-out efforts to minimize the fallout from the tragedy, which occurs just days before heavily promoted legislative elections.
