Hong Kong firefighters made a final push to try and find victims and any possible survivors from the city's worst fire in memory, going apartment-to-apartment in the high-rise complex in an exhaustive search.
At least 128 people were known to have died in the blaze that started Wednesday at Wang Fuk Court in the suburban Tai Po district. Dozens more were injured, and about 900 of the 4800 residents were evacuated to temporary shelters.
Seven of the eight 32-storey towers in the building complex were engulfed in flames after construction materials and bamboo scaffolding spread the fire. Officials said extreme heat was hampering rescue efforts.
The fire was deadlier than a 1996 blaze in a commercial building in Kowloon that killed 41 people. A warehouse fire in 1948 killed 176 people, according to the South China Morning Post.
Here's what to know about the fire:
How the buildings burst into flames
Officials were investigating why construction materials, netting and bamboo scaffolding being used in renovations to the exterior of the buildings caught fire.
Secretary for Security Chris Tang said Friday initial information suggested that the blaze started around the scaffolding net encasing the lower floors of one tower, then spread rapidly inside aided by highly flammable plastic foam panels fitted to the windows of the apartments.
The foam panels were believed to have been installed by the construction company but the purpose was not clear.
“The blaze ignited the foam panels, causing the glass to shatter and leading to a swift intensification of the fire and its spread into the interior spaces,” Tang said.
Falling bamboo poles that caught fire also spread the blaze to other floors of the towers, he added. Officials previously said high winds aided the rapid spread of the fire to multiple towers.
The type of buildings affected
About a third of Hong Kong residents lived in the government's Housing Authority dwellings. Wang Fuk Court was privately owned but subsidised housing built in the 1980s.
The apartments in the complex measured 40-45sqm, according to online real estate listings. Like most Hong Kong mass market housing, they appeared to lack smoke detectors or sprinkler systems. Authorities said some fire alarms in the complex did not sound when tested.
The buildings were constructed before revisions to Hong Kong's fire codes required mandatory fire refuge floors.
Hong Kong's 7.5 million residents mostly lived in cramped apartments crammed on scarce flat lands or perched on the slopes of steep mountainsides. Many of those high-rise buildings were crowded closely together.
How Hong Kong's authorities have responded
Firefighters struggled to bring the blaze under control as their ladders and hoses could only reach just over halfway up the 32-storey buildings, or about 53m – under 20 storeys.
High winds and extremely high heat may have prevented use of aerial equipment such as helicopters. The high temperatures also deterred firefighters from entering the buildings to fight the blaze and rescue survivors, said Derek Armstrong Chan, a deputy director of Hong Kong's Fire Services.
In total, 2300 firefighters and medical personnel were involved in the operation, and 12 firefighters were among the dozens injured.
At least 94 have been killed in the blaze that engulfed seven of eight towers. (Source: 1News)
The city’s anti-corruption agency said Friday it arrested eight people involved in the towers’ renovation, including scaffolding subcontractors, directors of an engineering consultant company and project managers supervising the renovation. Police on Thursday arrested three people, also connected to the renovation, on suspicion of manslaughter.
Hong Kong leader John Lee said the government would set up a task force to investigate the fire and the case would be submitted to the Coroner’s Court, which conducted inquiries into the causes and circumstances of certain deaths.
Lee said the government planned to inspect all housing estates undergoing major repairs to review the safety of scaffolding and construction materials.
Helping the survivors
The hundreds of survivors who were evacuated or were outside the buildings at the time the fire started were staying in temporary shelters, including a nearby school.
There, workers were distributing bottled water, food and other necessities. Volunteers were bringing supplies like water and snacks.
Officials said affected residents are receiving some 60,000 Hong Kong dollars (NZ$13,441) in financial assistance. Families of those who were killed will also receive 200,000 Hong Kong dollars (NZ$44,803) each.
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