Police have arrested two directors of a contractor company and a consultant on charges of manslaughter in connection with a fire at a Hong Kong housing apartment block.
SNPNEWS.IN (Gurmail Kamboj): Yesterday, August 26, a massive fire broke out at the Wang Fook Court housing estate in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district, quickly engulfing seven of the eight (31-32 storey) residential buildings under renovation. The buildings were clad in highly flammable bamboo and green netting.
The death toll has risen to 44 as of the morning of November 27, including a firefighter. 279 residents are still missing in the elderly-populated area. Twenty-nine survivors of the accident are in hospital, seven of whom are in critical condition.
According to the Hong Kong government, the fire at Wang Fook Court broke out at around 2:51am local time yesterday, after which the fire department was notified.
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Firefighters working under a level-five alarm have brought four buildings under control and left the remaining three to burn strategically due to the risk of collapse, but access to the upper floors is still difficult.
Hong Kong police have arrested two directors of the contracting company and a consultant on charges of involuntary manslaughter, as they suspect that substandard fire-safety materials helped the fire spread so quickly.
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee has called it a ‘massive disaster’, President Xi Jinping has expressed condolences, 1,400 temporary flats have been set aside for displaced people and the postponement of district elections amid public outcry is being considered.
It is worth noting that Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China and makes all decisions on its own except for foreign affairs and security, and has its own currency (the Hong Kong dollar). Rescue operations are ongoing, community-made apps are tracking missing people by floor and unit, but heavy smoke is still hanging over the northern New Territories.