Hong Kong fire: police blame construction firm's 'gross negligence' as death toll rises to 55

Hong Kong Police Point Fingers at Construction Firm Over Deadly Building Fire

In a devastating turn of events, the death toll from a massive fire in a Hong Kong residential complex has risen to 55, with over 250 people still unaccounted for. The blaze, which broke out during renovation work on Wednesday, left many residents trapped and forced firefighters to battle intense heat and thick smoke.

Hong Kong police have alleged that the construction firm responsible for the maintenance work may have been at fault due to "gross negligence." The company's use of unsafe scaffolding and foam materials is believed to have contributed to the rapid spread of the fire. Authorities have also found windows on one unaffected building sealed with a foam material, installed by a contractor.

The fire, which has raised concerns about safety standards in Hong Kong, was reportedly fueled by windy conditions and bamboo scaffolding, a ubiquitous sight at Hong Kong building sites despite government efforts to phase it out due to safety concerns. Three companies have been identified as having breached safety regulations, and police have arrested three men from the construction firm.

The tragedy has drawn comparisons to the Grenfell Tower fire in London, which killed 72 people in 2017. The Hong Kong government has come under pressure to take action, with many residents expressing anger online about possible causes of the fire.

As the investigation into the cause of the fire continues, concerns are growing about the safety standards in Hong Kong's high-rise housing complexes, particularly those under subsidized home ownership schemes. Wang Fuk Court, where the fire occurred, has been undergoing renovations for over a year at a cost of HK$330m ($42.4m).

With 279 residents unaccounted for, many are struggling to come to terms with what happened and how it could have been prevented. The government has promised an "all-out effort" to extinguish the fire and minimize casualties and losses.

The Hong Kong police superintendent who led the investigation into the cause of the fire said that there were "reasons to believe that the company's responsible parties were grossly negligent." The construction firm involved, Prestige Construction and Engineering Company, has not commented on the allegations.

omg have you tried those new popcorn flavors at the cinema i mean what's up with all the different flavor options like salted caramel and strawberry basil? i'm kinda intrigued but also kinda meh, idk why they need so many flavors . btw did u hear that hong kong is trying to phase out bamboo scaffolding because of safety concerns? that's really sad for the ppl affected by the fire . anyway back to popcorn... have you tried that one with truffle oil? it sounds fancy but i'm not sure if i'd like it

Man I'm so sad about this tragedy in Hong Kong The fact that people lost their lives due to what seems like a preventable accident is just heartbreaking. It's crazy how many safety regulations have been breached here - it's like the construction firm just didn't care about anyone but themselves.

And can we talk about how bamboo scaffolding is still being used in Hong Kong despite knowing its dangers? I mean, I get that it's cheap and all, but come on! The government needs to do better than just "phasing it out" - they need to take real action to fix this issue once and for all.

The comparison to Grenfell Tower fire is really striking - 55 lives lost in Hong Kong is still 55 too many . I'm hoping the police investigation uncovers some serious negligence on the part of Prestige Construction and Engineering Company, but till then, it's just going to feel like business as usual for these people.

The government promises an "all-out effort" to minimize casualties, but what that really means is we need concrete actions, not just words . Until then, I'll be over here, following the situation closely and hoping for a better outcome.

this is so sad what happened in hong kong another huge fire tragedy it makes me think about how important safety measures are especially with bamboo scaffolding still being used in some places i drew a quick diagram to represent my thoughts:


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( o.o )
> ^ <

the construction firm's use of foam materials and unsafe scaffolding was a major contributor to the fire but it's not just that, the whole system is flawed


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( ^ - ^ )
>___<


we need better safety regulations and enforcement in hong kong especially when it comes to subsidized housing complexes there are many questions still unanswered but one thing is for sure, something needs to change

Oh my gosh, 55 people are dead?! That's just heartbreaking I don't know how they can fix this but we gotta do something to make sure this never happens again We need to get to the bottom of what went wrong and hold those responsible accountable The government needs to take action ASAP, like increasing safety regulations and making sure everyone follows them And what's up with bamboo scaffolding?! It seems so outdated Let's hope we can learn from this tragedy and make Hong Kong a safer place for all its residents

this is just heartbreaking... 55 lives lost already and so many more still missing it's like we're watching a never-ending horror movie play out on our screens... how can one fire be so catastrophic? what's going on with these construction firms, are they really that reckless? and the government's all well... does that just ease their conscience or is there something more sinister at play here?

it makes me think of those bamboo scaffolding things, always seen around here but never a good idea... how can we expect safety when it seems like our priorities lie elsewhere? what about those subsidies, are they worth risking lives over? so many questions and not enough answers

idk why ppl are so shocked it happened in hk, bamboo scaffolding is everywhere , but i guess its true, the system failed them badly. HK gov's been trying to phase it out for yrs now, but it seems like they didn't do enough . 3 companies got fined, but that won't bring back those 55 people . what really gets me is how slow the investigation is going , ppl need answers ASAP!

omg this is soooo sad i cant even imagine what those 250 ppl are goin thru rn i know that safety standards in hk should be better tho how can they let ppl work w/ bamboo scaffolding? and now ppl r gettin all mad online about it i mean whats the point of havin a gov if u cant even keep ppl safe? can we pls just say somethin about this 4 once?!

omg this is so sad 55 people lost their lives and over 250 are still unaccounted for it's just crazy... i was wondering why hong kong buildings always have bamboo scaffolding but i guess that's because of old habits and stuff. anyway, the fact that the construction firm used foam materials and unsafe scaffolding is just ridiculous it's like they wanted to increase the risk of fire. and now the gov't is under pressure to take action which is kinda late if you ask me... we need to make sure that all buildings in hong kong are safe, especially for subsidized home owners who can barely afford their rent as it is

this is just another tragic reminder of how our city is still struggling with building safety standards . I mean, come on, we're a city that's all about progress but also prioritizing profit over people's lives? it's just so frustrating to see the government saying they're doing everything they can when in reality, these incidents are happening because of systemic failures . We need better regulations and enforcement, not just empty promises . And what about all those bamboo scaffolding? It's like we're still trying to get rid of that old habit but somehow it keeps coming back . This is why I think the government needs to take a hard look at their policies and make some real changes .

Man, this is just so sad . I was just reading about some renovation work at a building in Tokyo back in 2010, it ended up being a huge fire that killed like 10 people... but you know what? The company got fined and everything turned out alright in the end. But here in Hong Kong, it's like they're not even trying to learn from those mistakes . I mean, bamboo scaffolding is still everywhere on building sites... how can that be allowed? It's just so frustrating .

And yeah, I saw some videos of people online saying how this reminds them of the Grenfell Tower fire... it's like, why do we keep having these tragedies? . And with 279 people unaccounted for, it's just... *sigh* . The government is promising to take action, but I don't know, man... sometimes it feels like they're too slow to react .

I remember when I was a kid, my aunt used to work in construction, and she always said that safety should be the top priority on every job site... I wish more people were listening to her back then . Anyway, I hope the investigation finds out what really happened and that justice is served .

I'm so shocked by this building fire in Hong Kong. It's like something out of a nightmare. I don't understand how this could have happened with all the safety measures in place . The fact that foam materials were used and bamboo scaffolding was still being used despite knowing it's not safe is just crazy. What kind of negligence is that?

The police saying the construction firm might be at fault due to gross negligence makes sense, but I wish they would release more info so we can understand what really happened . The fact that 55 people died and over 250 are still missing is just devastating . We need to find out how this could have been prevented and make sure something like this never happens again

Can you imagine building a multi-million dollar complex like Wang Fuk Court without even having a sprinkler system? I mean, it's like they expected nothing to go wrong during renovations... which, apparently, was the case . And now we're left with 55 dead and over 250 missing - crazy! They need to take a hard look at their safety standards and regulations, for real. We can't just blame it on the construction firm like that, there's gotta be accountability on both sides. And I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that they used foam materials... what were they thinking?!

55 lives lost already and it's still early days... how many more will we find out? foam insulation is a recipe for disaster, should've been phased out ages ago. Bamboo scaffolding? Are they kidding me? safety regulations are one thing but common sense is another. Can't believe the government is being quiet on this. We need transparency ASAP!

omg this is like totally horrific!!! 55 people dead & 250 unaccounted for i cant even imagine whats goin thru those poor families minds right now the police are pointin fingers at the construction firm & it looks like they were pretty reckless with those scaffolding materials & foam stuff what if more ppl had died? its a miracle the fire department was able to contain it but i guess thats not good enough 4 the gov or residents expect more anyway lets hope they catch the people responsible & get to the bottom of this

I'm really concerned about the state of building safety in Hong Kong right now . 55 people are dead and over 250 are missing - that's just devastating . The fact that the police think construction firm Prestige Construction and Engineering Company might be at fault due to gross negligence is a huge concern . I mean, who uses foam materials and bamboo scaffolding in high-rise buildings? It sounds like a recipe for disaster .

And what's even more worrying is that this isn't an isolated incident - three other companies have been identified as having breached safety regulations . The government needs to take action now and not just promise to 'do something' . We need concrete answers and real changes to ensure that this kind of tragedy never happens again .

The fact that the fire was fueled by windy conditions and bamboo scaffolding is a huge wake-up call for all of us . It's time for the government and construction companies to take building safety seriously and make some serious changes . Our lives depend on it .