36 h. ago Nightmares for days: Hong Kong firefighters open up about Tai Po blaze

Firefighters have described the gruelling conditions they faced in their search for survivors of Hong Kong’s worst fire in more than seven decades, with rescuers climbing dozens of flights of stairs as they conserved oxygen to look for anyone alive on the higher floors. For some firefighters, the operation has left them with feelings of guilt and helplessness after they only found bodies. One said encountering the scattered corpses had given him nightmares that left him unable to sleep normally...

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39 h. ago Hong Kong scaffold nets come down after deadly fire as residents get more help

Construction firms began removing scaffold netting from buildings across Hong Kong on Thursday to meet a three-day government-imposed deadline following the city’s deadliest blaze in decades. Authorities also doubled a living allowance for households at fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po and promised to help its residents with long-term housing issues. To meet Saturday’s deadline, contractors at more than 200 buildings under renovation started taking down scaffolding mesh to allay public...

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45 h. ago The pope visits Hong Kong for 3 hours in 1970 – SCMP archive

This article was first published on December 5, 1970 By Staff reporters A red letter day for Hong Kong Catholics The 73-year-old pontiff, looking fit in spite of his strenuous Asian tour, responded warmly. At times he stretched out his arms in a symbol of loving embrace, at others he blessed the crowds gathered to see him. He seemed especially pleased by the spontaneous gaiety of the greeting which 20,000 Catholic children gave him at the Happy Valley Racecourse to which he was taken by...

Politics

46 h. ago Scaffolding nets removed across Hong Kong as firms seek to meet 3

Construction firms have started removing scaffold netting across Hong Kong to meet a three-day government deadline, after suspected false safety certificates for mesh were found at two building sites in the wake of the deadly Tai Po fire that has claimed at least 159 lives. The green mesh, commonly draped over bamboo scaffolding erected at buildings under construction or renovation, came under heavy scrutiny after authorities found that contractors had installed cheaper, non-fire-resistant...

Politics

47 h. ago Hong Kong’s connectivity, talent can foster legal cooperation: minister, expert

Hong Kong’s connectivity and talent pool could help facilitate international legal and economic collaboration, the justice minister and an expert have said, as they joined representatives from more than 25 jurisdictions this week at an annual forum in the city. Speaking at the opening ceremony of the five-day Hong Kong Legal Week forum on Monday, Secretary for Justice Paul Lam Ting-kwok said this year’s theme, “Linking Laws, Bridging Worlds”, emphasised the city’s role in connecting various...

Politics

63 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...

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68 h. ago Hong Kong travel agency probed for announcing closure only a day before it folds

A Hong Kong travel agency has allegedly broken the law by announcing its plan to fold only a day before its closure, affecting 1,500 customers and involving around HK$1.7 million (US$218,400), according to a watchdog. The Travel Industry Authority on Wednesday vowed to investigate M&F Lucky Holiday Limited over its alleged rule violation after the company announced its intention to cease operations on Tuesday, a day before it shut down. “It constitutes a breach of the ordinance,” the watchdog...

Politics

68 h. ago Hong Kong travel agency probed for revealing closure day before it folded

A Hong Kong travel agency has allegedly broken the law by announcing its plan to fold only a day before its closure, affecting 1,500 customers and involving about HK$1.7 million (US$218,400), according to a watchdog. The Travel Industry Authority on Wednesday vowed to investigate M&F Lucky Holiday after the company announced on Monday its intention to cease operations the following day. “It constitutes a breach of the ordinance,” the watchdog said, referring to the Travel Industry Ordinance,...

Politics

3 d. ago Hong Kong man, 87, with dementia found dead 9 days after going missing

An elderly Hong Kong man with dementia who had been missing for nine days was found dead in the countryside by volunteer search teams. Leung Woon-yew, 87, a resident of Tai Hing Estate in Tuen Mun, was discovered in a bushy area near the top of Por Lo Shan at 12.40pm on Tuesday by the Voluntary Mount Search Team and Countryside Volunteer Search Team, according to Anson Cheng, founder of the Hong Kong Guardians volunteer rescue group. The groups had joined the search with authorities from the...

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

6 d. ago Hong Kong begins 3 days of mourning as more arrests made over deadly blaze

Hong Kong began a three-day official mourning period on Saturday for victims of the city’s deadliest blaze in decades as residents queued at the site of the tragedy and various halls to pay their respects, penning tributes and laying flowers. For the first time since the fire broke out on Wednesday at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, the death toll remained at 128 on Saturday. No further human remains were recovered, while about 150 people remained “unreachable”, according to police. Graft-busters...

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6 d. ago 3 cats and turtle rescued from Hong Kong residential complex days after fire

Several more pets have been rescued from the burned buildings of a residential complex in Tai Po, as animal charities continued to search for separated owners and expressed concerns that animals still trapped will have gone days without food or water. Authorities said on Saturday that a sweep of two blocks where flames were first extinguished at Wang Fuk Court – Wang Yan House and Wang Tao House – found no human remains, but three cats and a turtle were rescued and passed to the Society for the...

Events

6 d. ago Beijing launches nationwide fire safety drive in wake of deadly Hong Kong blaze

Authorities in mainland China have launched a nationwide campaign to eliminate fire hazards in high-rise buildings, days after Hong Kong’s deadliest blaze in decades tore through a residential complex – claiming at least 128 lives. The Work Safety Committee of the State Council, China’s cabinet, announced the sweeping drive in a notice on Saturday, according to state media. The notice pledged to “identify and rectify” fire risks across high-rise residential and public-use buildings, from tower...

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6 d. ago Hong Kong fire: Three days of mourning as China begins probe

Hong Kong fire: Three days of mourning as China begins probe  DW

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6 d. ago Hong Kong begins 3 days of mourning for fire victims; death toll at 128 – as it happened

Hong Kong begins 3 days of mourning for fire victims; death toll at 128 – as it happened  South China Morning Post

Events

7 d. ago ‘Hongkongers’ solidarity’: volunteers pick up pieces for Tai Po fire victims

Against the backdrop of the seven charred residential blocks, an open plaza next to Wang Fuk Court has transformed into a bustling relief centre, manned by hundreds of volunteers aiding thousands of displaced residents on the third day since Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades. As large quantities of donated supplies continuously flowed into the area, volunteers – mostly mobilised through social media and chat groups – sorted the items systematically and divided the plaza into different zones...

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7 d. ago Families arrive to identify bodies as Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 94 on day 3

Families arrive to identify bodies as Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 94 on day 3  South China Morning Post

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8 d. ago Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 94 as rescue work continues into day 3

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: 94 people, including a firefighter, have died 76 injured including 11 firefighters 25 calls for help remain unresolved Full-scale rescue work is ongoing, with a woman, an elderly man and pets evacuated The eight residential blocks in the estate had been...

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8 d. ago Families arrive to identify bodies as Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 94

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: 94 people, including a firefighter, have died 76 injured including 11 firefighters 25 calls for help remain unresolved More bodies are retrieved from fire scene wrapped in black bags Full-scale rescue work is ongoing, with a woman, an elderly man and pets...

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8 d. ago 2 consultant directors arrested as Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 94

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: 94 people, including a firefighter, have died 76 injured including 11 firefighters 25 calls for help remain unresolved More bodies are retrieved from fire scene wrapped in black bags Full-scale rescue work is ongoing, with a woman, an elderly man and pets...

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