The death toll from Hong Kong's worst fire in nearly 80 years has risen to 128 and about 200 people remain missing from the high-rise residential complex that was engulfed by the blaze, the territory's security chief said today.
The fire in the Wang Fuk Court development, with eight 32-story towers in the northern district of Tai Po, started and quickly spread on Wednesday afternoon.
"We do not rule out the possibility that more bodies could be discovered when police enter the building for detailed investigations," Hong Kong Security Chief Chris Tang told a news conference, adding that only 39 of the 128 dead had been identified.
Photo: Reuters
Tang also said fire alarms in the complex had not been working properly.
Rescue efforts had now been concluded and at least 79 people, including 12 firefighters were injured, he said.
"Our aim now is to make sure the temperature decreases in the building and once everything is deemed safe, police will collect evidence and conduct further investigation,” Tang said.
The estate housing more than 4,600 people had been wrapped in bamboo scaffolding and green mesh for renovation work.
Police said they had arrested three construction company officials on suspicion of manslaughter for using unsafe materials, including flammable foam boards blocking windows.
Residents were told by authorities last year that they faced "relatively low fire risks" after complaining repeatedly about fire hazards posed by ongoing renovation works, the Hong Kong Labour Department told Reuters.
The residents had raised concerns over the renovations in September last year, including about the potential flammability of the protective green mesh contractors had used to cover the bamboo scaffolding erected around the buildings, a department spokesperson said in an e-mail.
The fire is Hong Kong's deadliest since 1948, when 176 people died in a warehouse blaze, and has prompted comparisons to London's Grenfell Tower inferno, which killed 72 people in 2017.
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