Hong Kong residents react as deadly fire rips through housing estate

“When you get closer, the heat increases and you can feel it and the smoke is very thick.”

Student Thomas Liu was one of many people drawn to the scene of a deadly fire that razed much of the eight-block Wang Fuk Court housing complex in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district.

So far, at least 44 people have died in Wednesday’s devastating fire and, with hundreds of people still missing, this number is expected to rise. The cause is not yet known.

“It’s a disaster,” Thomas said of the fire, telling the BBC he had seen a body being carried away.

“Many people sent us WhatsApp messages or called us, saying they still have relatives inside or can’t find them,” Tai Po district councilor Mui Siu-fung told BBC China.

More than a thousand other people were forced to evacuate the farm as the flames spread, and some headed to centers created to house them. Police also moved people from nearby buildings.

The fire is gradually being contained, but authorities say they do not know when it will be completely extinguished. Flames could be seen coming from individual apartments as many people watched in silence.

One woman said her friends live inside the building and she was waiting to hear if they made it out.

Harry Cheung, who has lived in block two of the Wang Fuk Court complex for more than 40 years, told Reuters he heard “a very loud noise” and saw a fire break out in a nearby block.

“I immediately went back to get my things,” the 66-year-old resident said.

“I don’t even know how I feel right now. I’m just thinking about where I’m going to sleep tonight because I probably won’t be able to come home.”

A woman in her sixties, whose surname is Kam and who lives in the adjacent Kwong Fuk estate, told the South China Morning Post (SCMP) that several of her friends living in Wang Fuk court have been found, but not all of them.

A friend takes daily afternoon naps and may have been sleeping when the fire broke out at 2:51 p.m. local time (06:51 GMT), Kam said, adding that the woman’s daughters have not yet been able to contact her.

Another resident, Jason Kong, 65, told Reuters that a neighbor called him and told him he was still trapped inside one of the towers.

“I’m devastated. There are so many neighbors and friends. I don’t know what’s going on anymore. Look, all the apartments are burning. I don’t know what to do. I hope the government can help us calm down after this.”

An elderly woman who lives in one of the affected blocks told the BBC that she was not at home when the fire broke out but is worried about her apartment because it is not insured.

“I’m very upset because now I don’t have a home to go to,” she said.

While the cause of the fire that engulfed the multiple high-rise blocks is unknown, the flames are believed to have spread quickly through the bamboo scaffolding covering the buildings, which were being renovated.

Some people have expressed anger that such a massive fire could have occurred and criticized the response.

“When there is a forest fire, they will deploy helicopters and drop water bombs, but why is there no such deployment and how can they leave other buildings on fire?” asked Mrs. Poon, another resident of Wang Fuk court, who is in her sixties.

“The community is very close to the fire station and we thought the fire could be put out soon, but now it has spread. I am very disappointed,” she told SCMP.

Ms. Poon noted that the government had not given her instructions on where to seek help.

The BBC spoke to some Tai Po residents who had brought supplies to the victims and affected residents, including dozens of blankets and thermal bags.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee said government departments were helping residents affected by the fire.

When asked about their feelings about the fire, residents said “the government is incompetent” and that they were “immensely heartbroken.”

“We don’t want to see more victims,” ​​said one.