36 h. ago Hong Kong firefighters describe rescue efforts during Tai Po estate 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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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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36 h. ago ‘Darkest corner’: firefighters haunted by Hong Kong blaze but vow to keep serving

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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50 h. ago Manslaughter hard to prove in Hong Kong fire amid regulatory gaps, experts warn

Shortcomings in Hong Kong’s building regulations could complicate efforts to prove manslaughter in the Tai Po housing estate blaze that killed 159 people, according to legal and construction experts. Police have arrested 21 people so far, including 15 for alleged manslaughter, after authorities found flammable foam panels and nets that were not flame-retardant on the scaffolding that covered the eight blocks of Wang Fuk Court, which had been under renovation since July last year. The blaze at...

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3 d. ago 6 arrested over fire alarm system at Hong Kong blaze estate; death toll now 159

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: 159 people, including a firefighter, confirmed dead 79 injured, including 12 firefighters About 30 people remain unaccounted for HK$2.3 billion raised for rescue and relief efforts The eight blocks in Wang Fuk Court had been undergoing renovations since July...

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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...

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4 d. ago Firefighters in Hong Kong? This video was shot in Chile in 2024

With the rise of social media and generative AI, how much of what we see online is true? In this new series, SCMP Fact-Check, the Post investigates claims circulating online and debunks viral misinformation impacting the daily lives of Hongkongers. A 16-second clip was shared on Facebook on Thursday and has amassed more than 200,000 views. “Firefighters’ first person perspective. A tribute to firefighters #HongKongFire #FireRescue #Firefighters,” the post’s Chinese caption reads. The video...

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7 d. ago Anxious wait for relatives of people still missing in deadly Hong Kong fire

Families of residents still missing after a blaze engulfed an estate complex in Hong Kong on Wednesday face an agonising wait for news of their loved ones as the government needs more time to identify many of the bodies. Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung said on Friday that among the 89 unidentified bodies so far recovered from the charred buildings of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, about half would soon be identified as they were found inside their flats. But authorities needed additional...

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8 d. ago Hong Kong blaze’s ‘heat, flames main challenges for rescuers, not ladder limits’

Excessive heat and raging flames that engulfed a Tai Po estate in one of Hong Kong’s deadliest fires posed the biggest challenges for firefighters, experts have said, as they dismissed suggestions that height limitations of aerial ladders added to the blaze’s severity. They were responding to widespread online speculation that the severity of the highest No 5 fire alarm blaze stemmed from limitations in the Fire Services Department’s ladder apparatus and a refusal to ask for help from mainland...

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8 d. ago Hong Kong fire’s ‘heat, flames main challenges for rescuers, not ladder limits’

Excessive heat and raging flames that engulfed a Tai Po estate in one of Hong Kong’s deadliest fires posed the biggest challenges for firefighters, experts have said, as they dismissed suggestions that height limitations of aerial ladders had added to the blaze’s severity. They were responding to widespread online speculation that the severity of the highest No 5 fire alarm blaze stemmed from limitations in the Fire Services Department’s ladder apparatus and a reluctance to ask for help from...

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8 d. ago Contractor was warned over risks a week before deadly fire hit Hong Kong estate

Hong Kong labour authorities had warned the contractor working on Wang Fuk Court’s renovation about a fire hazard just a week before the housing estate in Tai Po was engulfed in the city’s worst blaze in decades, the Post has learned. In the aftermath of the devastating blaze that has so far claimed 65 lives, some residents said the fire alarms did not go off while an engineer warned that the flats destroyed in the inferno might not be habitable again. In a reply to the Post’s queries, the...

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8 d. ago ‘My superhero’: girlfriend mourns loss of firefighter killed in Hong Kong blaze

Pride mingled with grief as the family and loved ones of the Hong Kong firefighter who died while battling Wednesday’s disastrous high-rise inferno shared their feelings of tragic loss. The girlfriend of the deceased firefighter, Ho Wai-ho, posted a heartfelt message on social media on Thursday, revealing her grief and longing for her boyfriend. “I really, really want to be able to hold your hand again,” she wrote, adding that she “could not accept” what had happened and wished to “take a break”...

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9 d. ago Developing | 36 dead, 279 missing in Hong Kong housing estate blaze

Developing | 36 dead, 279 missing in Hong Kong housing estate blaze  South China Morning Post

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9 d. ago At least 13 dead as huge fire rips through Hong Kong housing estate

At least 13 people including a firefighter were killed and 33 others injured in a fiery blaze that ravaged a housing estate in Hong Kong’s northeastern district of Tai Po on Wednesday, as scorching flames engulfed bamboo scaffolding across seven residential blocks. An unknown number of residents of the Wang Fuk Court estate were still believed to be trapped inside as of early Thursday morning with the whereabouts of at least 70 reportedly unclear, while distraught families, fearing the worst,...

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9 d. ago At least 36 dead as huge fire rips through Hong Kong housing estate

At least 36 people including a firefighter were killed and 279 are still missing after a ferocious blaze ravaged a housing estate in Tai Po yesterday, as scorching flames engulfed bamboo scaffolding and ripped through seven residential blocks. Some 29 people were hospitalised, with seven in a critical condition, a grim-looking Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu reported in an early morning conference at Prince of Wales Hospital in Sha Tin while distraught families, fearing the worst, awaited news...

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9 d. ago Hong Kong leader John Lee pays tribute to firefighter killed in Tai Po blaze

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu and top officials expressed sorrow over the death of a firefighter killed while battling a blaze at a Tai Po estate, paying tribute to his “gallantry and selfless devotion to duty”. Ho Wai-ho, 37, died while tackling the blaze at one of the blocks of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po. The fire broke out on Wednesday and spread rapidly to other towers in the estate. Director of Fire Services Andy Yeung Yan-kin said Ho, from Sha Tin Fire Station, arrived at the...

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9 d. ago Breaking | 13 dead as searing heat hampers Hong Kong Tai Po blaze rescue efforts

Breaking | 13 dead as searing heat hampers Hong Kong Tai Po blaze rescue efforts  South China Morning Post

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9 d. ago Firefighter and 3 others dead, people trapped as blaze engulfs Hong Kong blocks

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Four people including a firefighter were killed and at least three others injured in a major fire that broke out in Hong Kong’s Tai Po neighbourhood, with fierce flames spreading across bamboo scaffolding at a housing estate, which has also trapped multiple residents. Huge plumes of dark smoke billowed high into the sky at the scene at Wang Fuk Court on...

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9 d. ago 13 dead as searing heat hampers Hong Kong Tai Po blaze rescue efforts

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Thirteen people including a firefighter have been killed and at least 15 others are critically injured in an inferno ravaging a housing estate in Hong Kong’s Tai Po neighbourhood, as flames lash over bamboo scaffolding across seven blocks with multiple residents trapped inside. Huge plumes of dark smoke billowed high into the sky at the scene at Wang Fuk...

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