Hong Kong: Authorities in Hong Kong are pressing forward with a large-scale search and recovery operation inside the remains of the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex, where a devastating fire last week claimed at least 146 lives, marking one of the city’s worst residential disasters in decades. Police teams and forensic units have been moving methodically through the blackened high-rise towers, combing each level for victims, evidence, and clues about how the blaze spread with such speed and severity.
Officials reported that searches have so far been completed in four of the seven towers damaged by the inferno. Several bodies were found in stairwells and on rooftops, suggesting that desperate residents attempted to escape upward as flames engulfed multiple floors. Around 40 people remain unaccounted for, prompting fears that the final death toll could rise as investigators enter the most heavily burned sections of the buildings.
The fire, which erupted during renovation work last Wednesday, quickly became uncontrollable. Scaffolding wrapped in mesh and flammable external insulation accelerated the fire’s spread, turning the towers into massive vertical fire traps. Emergency services fought through intense heat and falling debris, but many residents were unable to escape in time. As structural engineers assess the remaining risks, rescue teams continue to navigate hazardous interiors where walls, floors, and staircases have suffered extensive damage.
A humanitarian crisis has emerged alongside the tragedy. More than 1,700 displaced residents have been moved from emergency shelters into temporary housing facilities. Many escaped with only the clothes they were wearing, losing all documents, belongings, and personal records. The government has promised financial assistance, free reissuance of identity papers, and long-term support for affected families, but frustration and grief remain palpable among survivors.
Public mourning has swept the city. Thousands have gathered near the disaster site to light candles, offer prayers, and pay final respects to the victims. Memorial queues have stretched for hours, with homemakers, students, migrant workers, and elderly residents standing together in silent solidarity. In cities abroad, including Tokyo and London, diaspora communities have organized vigils to honour the dead and support grieving families back home.
Meanwhile, tensions are rising over reported safety lapses and regulatory failures. Residents of the complex had previously expressed concerns about the renovation materials being used, especially the exterior foam and scaffolding mesh that later fuelled the fire. Authorities have arrested 11 people linked to the construction and renovation project, investigating allegations of substandard materials, fire-safety violations, and potential corruption in the approval process.
Calls for an independent inquiry into the tragedy have grown louder, with over 10,000 people signing a petition within two days. However, several organizers of the petition were detained under national-security provisions, drawing criticism from civil-rights groups and raising concerns about limits on public accountability. Beijing’s representatives have warned against “politicising the tragedy,” urging the public to avoid gatherings that could “disrupt social order.”
As the city begins a designated three-day mourning period, Hong Kong finds itself confronting not only a profound human loss but also urgent questions about safety standards, oversight, and governance. The catastrophe has exposed vulnerabilities in residential fire protection and reinforced the need for reforms that priorities the safety of residents in densely populated urban environments.
With searches still underway in the most damaged towers, the community waits anxiously for closure. The tragedy has united Hong Kong in grief, but it has also opened a powerful demand for change one that survivors and families insist must not be ignored.