‘Heartbreaking’: Resident Near Hong Kong Blaze Describes Tragedy as Families Await News

The massive fire that tore through the Wang Fuk Court residential complex in Hong Kong's densely populated Tai Po district on Wednesday has claimed at least 44 lives, including a firefighter, with 279 people still reported missing as rescue operations continue into their second day. More than 4,800 residents from nearly 2,000 households were evacuated, many wrapped in blankets as they watched helplessly from nearby streets. At least 45 people remain in critical condition in hospitals, with injuries ranging from smoke inhalation to severe burns, predominantly among the elderly trapped on upper floors.

Eyewitness accounts paint a harrowing picture of the chaos. A local woman, living just 10 minutes from the site, shared on X her heartbreak over the ongoing blaze, which she said had been raging for hours at the time of her post. "Lives have been lost, many of the injured are elderly, and people are still missing because they were trapped on the higher levels," she wrote, noting the classification as a level-five fire—the worst in almost 30 years. She highlighted the human toll, with displaced families seeking shelter in community halls and schools while awaiting news of relatives, and urged prioritizing lives over events like the upcoming MAMA Awards at Kai Tak Stadium, scheduled for November 28-29, amid concerns it might be postponed.

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Hong Kong police have arrested three individuals from a construction company on suspicion of manslaughter, citing gross negligence in safety protocols during renovations. Investigators suspect construction workers smoking near the scaffolding may have ignited the materials, a risk residents had reportedly flagged to management beforehand. Chief Executive John Lee activated an emergency monitoring center and chaired an interdepartmental meeting, while authorities imposed a temporary no-fly zone and road closures around the area. A task force is probing the exact cause, amid criticism over the use of traditional bamboo scaffolding in high-rises despite known fire hazards—Hong Kong has seen at least three such incidents this year alone.

The tragedy has gripped the city, with social media flooded by videos of flames leaping between towers and residents' desperate pleas for missing loved ones. Temporary shelters like Kwong Fuk Community Hall and Tai Po Community Centre are overflowing, and a police hotline has been set up for inquiries about the injured or missing. As the death toll rises and DNA testing begins on unidentified remains, the incident underscores vulnerabilities in Hong Kong's aging public housing stock, where over 80% of the population lives in high-rises prone to rapid fire spread in one of the world's most vertical urban landscapes.

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