Five months after Hong Kong’s deadliest residential fire in decades, thousands of displaced residents have begun returning to their former homes in the Tai Po district, confronting the charred remains of buildings that were devastated in the November blaze that killed 168 people.

Beginning Monday, residents of the Wang Fuk Court housing complex started entering the damaged apartment blocks for the first time since the fire. The controlled return is being conducted in phases and is expected to continue into early May, allowing families limited time to retrieve belongings and assess the condition of their homes.

For many survivors, the visit has been emotionally overwhelming. Elderly residents, who made up a significant portion of the complex’s population, were among the first to return despite the physical difficulty of climbing multiple floors in buildings where elevators remain out of service. Some had prepared for the strenuous ascent by training in advance, while others required assistance from family members or social workers.

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Inside the buildings, residents were confronted with extensive destruction. Burnt interiors, exposed steel reinforcements, collapsed ceilings, and water- and debris-damaged floors reflected the intensity of the fire that spread across seven of the eight blocks in the housing estate. Officials have allowed limited entry—typically up to three hours per visit with restricted group sizes—depending on the structural condition of individual units.

Many returning residents expressed grief and disbelief as they searched through what remained of their possessions. Some recovered partially damaged belongings, while others found that personal items, including photographs, documents, and sentimental keepsakes, had been destroyed. Several residents described the experience as emotionally distressing, particularly as they revisited homes where they had lived for decades.

The disaster, which killed 168 people and displaced over 4,000 residents, continues to be under investigation. Authorities have indicated that widespread fire safety failures contributed to the rapid spread of the blaze, with an inquiry pointing to human error affecting key safety systems. Meanwhile, concerns about theft at the vacant site have also emerged, with police previously arresting individuals suspected of looting.

The Hong Kong government has said that repairing the severely damaged buildings may not be feasible and has suggested demolishing the affected blocks while offering to buy back homeownership rights from victims. However, the proposal has sparked mixed reactions among residents, some of whom believe parts of the estate could still be salvaged.

As families grapple with loss and uncertainty, the emotional toll remains high. For many, the return is not only a practical step to recover belongings, but also a painful confrontation with the scale of destruction and the lives altered by one of Hong Kong’s worst fire tragedies in recent memory.

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