5 d. ago Singapore takes stock of lessons from Hong Kong’s Tai Po blaze

Singapore has begun reviewing early findings from the investigation into Hong Kong’s deadly Tai Po high-rise blaze, with ministers signalling that lessons from the tragedy could feed into tighter rules on construction and maintenance works in the city state. Lawmakers said in parliament on Monday that observations made by Hong Kong authorities about the fire at Wang Fuk Court would be studied and, where relevant, incorporated into Singapore’s legislation and policy framework. The blaze, which...

Politics

5 d. ago Hong Kong DAB chief urges respect for Tai Po fire survivors’ community ties

The head of Hong Kong’s largest political party has urged authorities to respect the deep-rooted community ties of residents displaced by the deadly Tai Po inferno, amid growing concerns that the government might rule out the option of rebuilding on the original site. Gary Chan Hak-kan, chairman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, said on Monday that while Wang Fuk Court residents had different demands, the mainstream view was to move into new housing as...

Events

6 d. ago Hong Kong police to release list of 161 Tai Po fire victims, some families told

Hong Kong police have informed some families who lost their loved ones in the tragic Tai Po fire that a full list of the 161 deceased will be made public, the Post has learned. Six weeks after Wang Fuk Court fire, Hong Kong’s deadliest in decades, two residents who lost family members told the Post separately that officers contacted them by phone on Sunday to relay the plan. “The police called us and said they will release the list. They didn’t ask if we agree or not, or tell us when,” said one...

Events

1 week ago Hong Kong councillors urge swift rebuilding and rehousing options after Tai Po fire

Tai Po district councillors have urged the government to expedite rebuilding plans and offer Wang Fuk Court residents a range of rehousing options after Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades, as officials pledged to weigh the pros and cons of each proposal. At the first meeting of Tai Po District Council since the fire on November 26, all 22 members attended, including Peggy Wong Pik-kiu, who has come under heavy scrutiny for advising the owners’ corporation of the housing estate on its HK$330...

Events

1 week ago Hong Kong’s Wang Fuk Court owners’ group mounts defence against ‘smear campaign’

The owners’ committee of the fire-hit Wang Fuk Court housing estate in Hong Kong has rejected accusations of poor transparency and accountability as a “baseless smear campaign”, issuing a lengthy report ahead of a legal process to dissolve the group. In a 183-page report issued on Monday to fellow owners of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, the group also disclosed that it had paid about HK$180 million (US$23 million) to the contractors for repair and renovation work. The group added that it helped...

Events

1 week ago Wang Fuk Court owners’ group mounts defence against ‘smear campaign’ in Hong Kong

The owners’ committee of the fire-hit Wang Fuk Court housing estate in Hong Kong has rejected accusations of poor transparency and accountability as a “baseless smear campaign”, issuing a lengthy report ahead of a legal process to dissolve the group. In a 183-page report issued on Monday to fellow owners of Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, the group also disclosed that it had paid about HK$180 million (US$23 million) to the contractors for repair and renovation work. The group added that it helped...

Events

2 w. ago ‘Let us return’: some Tai Po fire survivors petition government for on

A group of survivors of the deadly inferno in Hong Kong last month has petitioned the government to redevelop the Wang Fuk Court site as a long-term resettlement plan, as authorities review options to rehouse them. In an open letter seen by the Post, the group of displaced residents urged Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu and other top officials to let them rebuild their lives with dignity and hope at the same site in Tai Po. “We implore the government to rebuild housing on the site of Wang Fuk...

Events

3 w. ago 5,000 Hong Kong workers idle as new scaffold net safety regime hits 200 projects

One month after the Wang Fuk Court fire, Hong Kong’s construction industry grapples with a scaffold net safety regime halting repairs on over 200 buildings. In the third part of a series, Edith Lin and Vivian Au report on calls for certified suppliers, expedited testing and a broader accountability overhaul. Here’s part one and two. Hong Kong’s construction industry has been thrown into uncertainty under a new scaffold net inspection regime introduced after the deadly fire in Tai Po, prompting...

Events

3 w. ago Committee probing Hong Kong fire visits Wang Fuk Court to inspect conditions

Members of an independent committee created to investigate Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades inspected the scene of the blaze on Tuesday morning to get a better understanding of the actual environment and conditions at Wang Fuk Court. Judge David Lok Kai-hong, the group’s chairman, was joined by fellow committee members such as Executive Council non-official member Chan Kin-por and outgoing MTR Corporation chairman Rex Auyeung Pak-kuen. Committee members were spotted wearing full protective...

Events

4 w. ago Hong Kong fire: authorities seek to dissolve Wang Fuk Court owners’ committee

Hong Kong authorities are seeking to dissolve the management committee of the Wang Fuk Court owners’ corporation and appoint a new property management company for the residential estate, in an unprecedented move following the city’s deadliest fire in decades. Secretary for Home and Youth Affairs Alice Mak Mei-kuen said on Friday that the government was intervening for the first time on record in a residential estate’s affairs by applying to the Lands Tribunal to dissolve the management committee...

Events

last month Taiwan restoration experts help families say goodbye to Hong Kong fire victims

Taiwanese mortuary reconstruction specialist Kuo Chang-chen wasted no time starting work to restore the bodies of Wang Fuk Court’s fire victims upon arriving in Hong Kong on Thursday. Kuo, 62, is leading a team of five other specialists from Taiwan who volunteered to assist in reconstructing the remains of the victims at the Kowloon Funeral Parlour. Their work aims to prepare the bodies for dignified funerals and offer closure to grieving families. “Every unexpected event deeply wounds the...

Events