A Massive Fire Broke Out In Hong Kong At An Apartment Complex, Killing 55 People With 279 Still Missing
Experts say the non-compliant, flammable mesh may have been a major factor in the fire, but the exact cause has not been confirmed.
A massive fire broke out in an apartment building in Tai Po neighborhood in Hong Kong, killing at least 55 people, including a firefighter, and at least 279 people are still missing.
The fire was first reported on Wednesday, Nov. 26, at 2:52 pm local time in a high-rise building complex with eight blocks, each 31 storys high, with nearly 2,000 apartments, housing thousands of people, mostly retired or elderly.
Dozens of people were also injured or remain in critical condition.
The building was under renovation when the fire broke out and burned for nearly 10 hours before it was brought under control.
Footage showed the bamboo scaffolding and green mesh around the buildings burning as flames moved quickly up the exterior.
The mesh was reportedly non-compliant and flammable, and experts say it may have been a major factor in how quickly the fire spread, but the exact cause has not been confirmed.
“We bought this building more than twenty years ago. All of our belongings were in this apartment, and now that it has all burned like this, what’s left? There’s nothing left. What are we supposed to do?” One of the residents told Reuters.
Police said three men aged between 52 and 68 — the construction company’s directors and an engineering consultant — were arrested on suspicion of manslaughter.
Chinese president Xi Jinping expressed condolences for the victims in the late evening and called for “all-out efforts” to minimize casualties and losses, according to state media.
The death toll is now the highest in a Hong Kong fire since 1948, when a warehouse blaze killed 176 people.
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