Update 11/26/25, 4:56 pm: The death toll in a massive fire that ripped through a public housing complex in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district climbed to at least 44 on Thursday, with authorities announcing the arrests of three construction company executives suspected of manslaughter in connection with substandard materials that fueled the blaze.
Forty people died at the scene of the Wednesday afternoon inferno at Wang Fuk Court, while four others succumbed to injuries in hospitals, officials said during a morning press conference. An additional 45 people remained in critical condition, and 279 residents were listed as unaccounted for amid the chaos.
The fire, classified as a level 5 — the city’s highest alert — engulfed seven of the complex’s eight high-rise towers, which house more than 4,000 mostly elderly residents in nearly 2,000 units. More than 800 firefighters battled the flames into the night, with over 700 evacuees sheltered in temporary facilities like a local sports center, where volunteers distributed water, instant noodles, and blankets to those sleeping on floor mats.
Three executives — two directors and a consultant from a construction firm — were taken into custody on suspicion of manslaughter, police said. Investigators pointed to highly flammable polystyrene boards blocking apartment windows, along with noncompliant protective nets, canvas, and plastic covers used during recent renovations, as factors that accelerated the spread. The company’s name appeared on the boards, and police accused the men of “gross negligence.”
Deputy Director of the Hong Kong Fire Department, Derek Armstrong Chan, estimated that crews would need the full day Thursday to fully contain the fire, but noted progress in four of the eight buildings. He urged any trapped residents to seal doors and windows with wet cloths, contact emergency services, and signal their locations.
This marks the deadliest fire in the city since 1996, when 41 perished in a Kowloon commercial building.
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A fast-moving blaze swept through a public housing estate in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district on Wednesday, killing 13 people and injuring at least 30 others while forcing hundreds to flee.
Nine victims died at the scene, and four died later in hospitals, authorities said. The fire, which started mid-afternoon on external bamboo scaffolding, quickly spread across several of the eight towers at Wang Fuk Court, home to nearly 4,800 residents.
Fire Services Department officials escalated the alarm to level 5, the highest severity, after nightfall.
#BREAKING: Apocalyptic scenes in Hong Kong as a massive fire jumps from high-rise to high-rise along the city's iconic skyline. Several people confirmed dead as the inferno rages. New images from the ferocious firefight as the death toll mounts – This morning at 6 from ABC7. pic.twitter.com/hfTFTiDO7l
— ABC7 Eyewitness News (@ABC7) November 26, 2025
“Debris and scaffolding of the affected buildings are falling down,” Deputy Director Derek Armstrong Chan told reporters, Associated Press reported. “The temperature inside the buildings concerned (is) very high. It’s difficult for us to enter the building and go upstairs to conduct firefighting and rescue operations.”
One firefighter was among the dead. Another was treated for heat exhaustion.
Flames and thick smoke poured from windows as ladder trucks sprayed water into the burning towers. Officials said some residents remained trapped late Wednesday, many believed to be elderly.
“I’ve given up thinking about my property,” one resident told a local news station, per AP. “Watching it burn like that was really frustrating.”
Roughly 700 people were evacuated to temporary shelters. District officials said displaced residents would not be allowed to return home on Wednesday night.
The cause is under investigation. Windy conditions, along with bamboo scaffolding and netting wrapped around the buildings for renovation work, helped the fire spread rapidly.
The government had announced earlier this year plans to phase out bamboo scaffolding on public projects due to safety concerns. Wednesday’s blaze was the second major fire in less than two months involving such scaffolding in the city.
