Hong Kong firefighters made a grim discovery on Friday as they uncovered more bodies during a meticulous search of a high-rise complex devastated by a massive fire. The death toll from one of the deadliest blazes in the city climbed to 128, with several individuals still unaccounted for.
According to Andy Yeung, the director of Hong Kong Fire Services, some fire alarms in the complex, predominantly inhabited by elderly residents, failed to activate during testing. The fire rapidly spread among seven buildings, facilitated by bamboo scaffolding covered in netting and foam panels that caught fire.
Authorities took into custody an additional eight individuals, aged between 40 and 63, including scaffolding subcontractors, engineering consultant company directors, and project managers overseeing the renovation of the towers. Emergency responders focused on apartments that had issued distress calls during the uncontrolled blaze but were inaccessible until later. It took approximately 24 hours for firefighters to contain the fire, which was fully extinguished by Friday morning.
Smoke still emanated from the charred structures two days after the fire commenced, with around 200 people yet to be located, including 89 unidentified bodies. Over 2,300 firefighters and medical personnel participated in the rescue efforts, with 12 firefighters sustaining injuries and one losing their life.
The apartment complex, consisting of eight 31-story buildings in the Tai Po district, had nearly 2,000 apartments housing approximately 4,800 residents. Investigations revealed that certain materials on the building exteriors did not meet fire safety requirements, contributing to the rapid spread of the fire.
The tragedy prompted the lowering of all official flags in the city to half-mast as a sign of mourning, with a three-minute silence led by city leader John Lee scheduled for Saturday. The fire marked the deadliest incident in Hong Kong in recent memory, surpassing the toll of previous tragic fires in the region. Plans are in place for immediate safety inspections of housing complexes undergoing extensive renovations to prevent similar disasters in the future.