Hong Kong reels from its deadliest blaze in decades as 44 die, hundreds remain missing and investigators probe how flames raced across ageing tower blocks
Hong Kong is reeling after a catastrophic fire tore through the Wang Fuk Court residential complex in Tai Po, killing at least 44 people and injuring 45 others, in what authorities say is the city’s deadliest blaze in more than six decades. The inferno, which erupted on Wednesday afternoon, rapidly engulfed nearly the entire eight-block public housing estate, leaving families devastated and hundreds unaccounted for.
At a sombre early-morning briefing on Thursday, Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee confirmed that 279 residents remained missing, as emergency services battled through the night to contain pockets of flame still burning deep within the buildings. “This is an immensely painful moment for Hong Kong,” he said, praising firefighters for their “tireless, heroic efforts” as they comb through charred corridors searching for survivors.
Officials said seven of the 29 people still hospitalised were in critical condition, while emergency shelters were set up across Tai Po to support displaced residents — many of whom fled with nothing more than their clothes and identification documents.
Arrests made as investigators probe cause of blaze
Hong Kong Police said three men have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter amid growing scrutiny over how the fire spread so quickly and consumed so many buildings in a matter of hours. Officers have not released details of the arrests but said all lines of inquiry remain open.
The blaze broke out at 2:51 p.m. local time on Wednesday and intensified rapidly, prompting fire officials to escalate it to a No. 5 alarm at 6:22 p.m. — the second-highest emergency level in the city’s system. Flames leapt across the estate, at one point engulfing seven of the eight residential towers, trapping residents on upper floors.
The Hong Kong Hospital Authority activated its Major Incident Control Centre, mobilising doctors, trauma teams and ambulances. Local schools suspended classes, while the Education Bureau dispatched counsellors and psychologists to temporary shelters.
District councillor Lam Yick Kuen said community groups, volunteers and charities had poured in supplies overnight, describing a wave of solidarity despite the unfolding tragedy. “People came with bags of food, clothing, bottled water — anything they could offer,” he said.
Bamboo scaffolding blamed for helping flames spread
In the first technical assessments emerging from the disaster, fire safety experts say Hong Kong’s iconic bamboo scaffolding may have played a critical role in accelerating the spread of the blaze.
Professor Jiang Liming of Hong Kong Polytechnic University told the BBC that the large network of bamboo structures connecting several of the towers had acted almost like a “fire bridge”, allowing flames to leap rapidly from block to block.
“It penetrated quickly,” he said, adding that bamboo — widely used in construction across the city — is highly combustible and deteriorates over time. Earlier this year, authorities had announced plans to phase out bamboo in favour of fire-resistant steel scaffolding.
Professor Jiang also noted that Wang Fuk Court’s buildings, constructed in the 1980s, lacked modern fire-resistant glass. “Many blocks from that era have single-pane windows,” he said. “They break easily under heat, letting flames enter flats and spread along the façade.”
An ageing community left vulnerable
Census data from 2021 show that nearly 40 per cent of the estate’s 4,600 residents are aged 65 or above. Many have lived there since the complex opened nearly four decades ago. Emergency workers said the high proportion of elderly residents significantly increased evacuation challenges.
Some survivors, disoriented and covered in soot, told reporters they had struggled to navigate smoke-filled stairwells, while others remained trapped behind jammed doors and collapsed debris. Volunteers described chaotic scenes at shelters as families searched desperate lists for missing relatives.
Worst fire in over 60 years
The scale of the tragedy has drawn comparisons with some of Hong Kong’s most devastating historical fires. Wednesday’s blaze has already matched the death toll of the 1962 Sham Shui Po inferno, which killed 44 people when fireworks stored in a building ignited and tore through upper floors.
It is the worst fire since 1948, when a warehouse explosion killed 176 people in what remains the deadliest blaze in the city’s history. More recently, in 1996, a fire in Kowloon’s Garley Building killed 41 and injured 81.
As dawn broke over Tai Po, smoke continued to cling to the skyline, and firefighters remained deep inside the complex, navigating weakened structures and unstable scaffolding. Chief Executive John Lee said a full and transparent investigation would follow once the emergency phase ended.
“The government will mobilise every resource,” he said. “Our immediate priority is extinguishing the remaining flames, rescuing trapped residents, providing medical and emotional support, and ensuring no family faces this tragedy alone.”
For now, Hong Kong remains in shock — and waiting for answers, as the number of missing continues to overshadow the death toll already confirmed.
