62 h. ago Filipino helper on her second day of work when Tai Po fire hit; escapes with baby

Filipino domestic helper Rhodora Alcaraz arrived in Hong Kong on Tuesday last week and went straight to work at her employer’s flat in Tai Po, finding herself battling flames a day later to make a miraculous escape with a three-month-old baby in her arms. The 27-year-old is now in an intensive care unit, unable to speak above a whisper, after suffering injuries, including to her throat, which made her feel like she had “poison pouring down her throat”. Last week, she arrived from her Central...

Events

3 d. ago Hongkongers gather on seventh day after Tai Po fire to grieve and demand answers

Residents and mourners have demanded that the Hong Kong government ramp up its investigations to hold responsible parties accountable, as they gathered to mark the seventh day after the start of the city’s worst fire in seven decades. Hundreds of people assembled at the Kwong Fuk sit-out area on Tuesday, laying flowers, writing messages of grief and praying for those who died in the blaze that engulfed Wang Fuk Court housing estate in Tai Po last week. Among them was Lui Yuk-lin, a 62-year-old...

Events

5 d. ago Filipino helper who fled Hong Kong fire with girl anguished over dead neighbour

A Filipino domestic worker who fled Hong Kong’s deadly inferno with her employers’ three-year-old daughter in her arms has expressed regret that she was unable to persuade a neighbour who perished in the blaze to also try to escape. Reinalyn Niere, who arrived in the city last year, said she was asleep with the child in the family’s third-floor flat in Tai Po’s Wang Fuk Court when disaster struck at the housing estate on Wednesday afternoon. The child’s parents were at work at the...

Events

6 d. ago Filipino helper among Hong Kong fire dead as national security police arrest man

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Get faster notifications on the latest updates by downloading our app. What we know so far: 128 people, including a firefighter, confirmed dead 79 injured, including 12 firefighters Status of 150 people unclear The eight residential blocks in the estate had been undergoing renovations since July 2024, covered in bamboo scaffolding and green...

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6 d. ago Filipino helper among victims of Hong Kong fire – as it happened

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Get faster notifications on the latest updates by downloading our app. What we know so far: 128 people, including a firefighter, confirmed dead 79 injured, including 12 firefighters Status of 150 people unclear The eight residential blocks in the estate had been undergoing renovations since July 2024, covered in bamboo scaffolding and green...

Events

8 d. ago Deadly Hong Kong fire leaves residents distraught as they mourn loss

An elderly Hongkonger desperately begged for help to find his six-month-old granddaughter who remained missing more than a day after Wednesday’s deadly fire engulfed a Tai Po estate. The man broke down as he pleaded for help outside a shelter on Thursday to locate his granddaughter, who lived on the 21st floor of Block F of Wang Cheong House, while the baby’s grandmother was also missing. “I’ve checked all the hospitals – no sign of them,” he said. “Police told me to register their details and I...

Events

2 w. ago China duo caught carving ‘success’, ‘good luck’ at ancient sites to change fate

Two men caught inscribing positive words and their names on rocks at 35 historical sites on China’s Mount Tai in a single day claim they did so to “change their fate”. The case gained national attention on November 7, when China’s Supreme People’s Court released details of it to mark the first anniversary of the revised Law of the People’s Republic of China on Cultural Relics Protection. The move was also aimed at raising public awareness about cultural heritage preservation. Two men are from...

Events

2 w. ago More financial courses needed among helpers in Hong Kong to avoid unethical loans

A year after arriving in Hong Kong in 2017, Filipino domestic helper Maria Nemy Lou Rocio took out a HK$25,000 (US$3,200) loan from a local bank to settle her family’s debts and provide for her three children at home. She had learned from other domestic workers about how to apply for the loan but said it took more than a year to repay it. With a monthly salary of less than HK$5,000, she was left with little for herself and had to borrow from friends to cover her daily expenses in the city. “I...

Politics

2 w. ago Financial education stepped up for Hong Kong’s helpers to avoid dodgy loans

A year after arriving in Hong Kong in 2017, Filipino domestic helper Maria Nemy Lou Rocio took out a HK$25,000 (US$3,200) loan from a local bank to settle her family’s debts and provide for her three children at home. The 44-year-old had learned from other domestic workers about how to apply for the loan but said it took more than a year to repay it. With a monthly salary of less than HK$5,000, she was left with little for herself and had to borrow from friends to cover her daily expenses in the...

Politics