Level 4 Fire at Apartment in New Territories, Hong Kong - Firefighter Among the Dead

An apartment residential area in Tai Po, New Territories, Hong Kong, caught fire on the 26th. As of around 6pm, the blaze had caused 4 deaths and 5 injuries, including two critically injured, one seriously injured, and the death of a firefighter.

According to Central News Agency, the affected apartment complex is Hong Fuk Court in Tai Po, with a 42-year history. The estate has 8 blocks with a total of 1,984 residential units. Before the fire, the estate was undergoing exterior wall repairs, so bamboo scaffolding was erected on all the building exteriors to facilitate the workers.

Residents at the scene told local media that around 3pm, someone saw the bamboo scaffolding on one of the buildings catch fire first. Due to the strong winds, the fire spread to bamboo scaffolding of other buildings and also ignited the interiors of many residential units.

After the fire broke out, a large number of firefighters arrived to extinguish the blaze, which was quickly upgraded to a more severe level 4 fire.

Some residents said that after the fire started, the interior of the building was filled with thick smoke and some people were trapped. As of 6pm, the fire had still not been put out.