SRINAGAR: At least 44 people have died and nearly 300 others remain unaccounted for after a massive fire tore through a cluster of high-rise residential buildings in Hong Kong, marking the city’s worst blaze in almost three decades, the BBC reported.
The fire broke out on Wednesday afternoon on the exterior of a 32-storey tower undergoing repair work. Flames quickly spread after igniting bamboo scaffolding and safety netting, before leaping to seven adjacent towers within the same Tai Po housing complex.
Strong winds intensified the blaze, sending thick smoke sweeping across the New Territories and forcing residents—many of them elderly—to flee as burning bamboo and debris fell from above. Around 900 people were evacuated to temporary shelters, while more than 140 fire engines and 60 ambulances were deployed.
Local media reported that police had arrested three men on suspicion of manslaughter in connection with the incident. Hong Kong’s Chief Executive, John Lee, said an immediate investigation had been launched, with both the police and the Fire Services Department forming a joint inquiry team. By midnight, he said the situation was beginning to stabilise.
Authorities confirmed that at least 45 people remained in hospital, several of them critically injured. Fire commanders cited extreme heat, collapsing scaffolding and unstable debris as major challenges for rescue crews. Senior fire officer Derek Armstrong Chan said conditions were so severe inside the buildings that firefighters struggled to access floors or conduct search operations.
The fire was elevated to a level-5 alert—Hong Kong’s highest warning—and continued burning late into the night. Firefighters used ladder trucks to spray the upper storeys, while police and medical personnel sealed off nearby streets filled with evacuees and anxious relatives.
