13 people killed in fire engulfing Hong Kong high-rise residential buildings, fire services say : NPR

A fire has spread to seven high-rise apartment buildings in a Hong Kong residential complex, killing 13 people and leaving others still trapped, the city’s fire services said on Wednesday.

Officials told reporters that nine people were declared dead at the scene and four others were sent to hospital, who were later confirmed dead. At least 15 others were injured, and about 700 people were evacuated to temporary shelters.

The massive fire created a plume of flames and thick smoke as it quickly spread over bamboo scaffolding and construction netting that had been set up on the exterior of the housing complex in Tai Po district in the New Territories. Records show that the residential complex consisted of eight blocks containing approximately 2,000 apartments housing approximately 4,800 people.

Videos from the scene show several buildings burning close to each other, with strong flames and smoke billowing from the windows of many apartments as night falls. Officials said hundreds of firefighters, police officers and paramedics were deployed, and video showed firefighters on ladder trucks aiming water at the intense flames from above.

The fire service department said the fire broke out in the afternoon and after nightfall officials upgraded it to a Level 5 alarm, the highest level of severity. The fire was still raging late into the night and officials said conditions remained very challenging for firefighters.

“Debris and scaffolding from the affected buildings are falling down,” said Derek Armstrong Chan, deputy director of fire services (operations). “The temperature inside the respective buildings is very high. It is difficult for us to enter the building and go up to conduct fire fighting and rescue operations.”

The reason behind the fire could not be immediately known. Officials said the fire broke out on the exterior scaffolding of a building and later spread inside the building and to nearby blocks due to windy conditions. The department said it had received “numerous” calls requesting assistance and that some residents were still stranded as of Wednesday night local time.

Fire personnel deployed 128 fire engines and 57 ambulances at the scene.

Fire Service Director Andy Yeung told reporters that one firefighter was among the dead and another was being treated for heat exhaustion.

Taipo District Council member Lo Hiu-fung told local TV station TVB on Wednesday that most of the residents trapped in the fire were believed to be elderly people.

District authorities in Tai Po have opened temporary shelters for people made homeless by the fire.

“I have given up thinking about my property,” a resident who gave only his surname Wu told TVB. “It was really disappointing to see it burn like that.”

Tai Po is a suburban area in the New Territories, in the northern part of Hong Kong and near the border with the mainland Chinese city of Shenzhen.

Bamboo scaffolding is a common sight in building construction and renovation projects in Hong Kong, although the government said earlier this year it would begin phasing out it for public projects due to safety concerns.