Mourners flock to site of deadly Hong Kong blaze as Beijing warns against protests

HONG KONG – More than a thousand people turned out on Nov 30 to pay tribute to the victims of

Hong Kong’s deadliest fire

in more than 75 years, as Beijing warned it would use a national security law to crack down on any “anti-China” protest in the wake of the fire.

The cause of the blaze at a high-rise apartment complex remains under investigation, amid public anger over missed fire risk warnings and evidence of unsafe construction practices.

Police said on the evening of Nov 30 that the confirmed death toll had risen to 146 after they completed a sweep of five of the burnt-out towers. Some bodies were found in stairwells and on rooftops, where residents had tried to escape.

More than 40 people are still missing after the fire, police said.

Mourners queued for more than 1km along the banks of a canal near the burnt-out Wang Fuk Court housing complex to lay white flowers for those who died. Some attached sticky notes addressed to the victims.

The smell of smoke still hung in the air four full days after the fast-moving blaze fanned across the exterior of seven residential towers under renovation in Hong Kong’s northern Tai Po district.

Ms Joey Yeung, 28, whose grandmother’s apartment burned in the fire, said she had come with her family with a sense of both mourning for the victims and anger at those responsible.

“I can’t accept it. So today I came with my father and my family to lay flowers,” Ms Yeung told Reuters. “I’m not asking to get anything back but at least give some justice to the families of the deceased – to those who are still alive.”

Seven Indonesian domestic workers and one Filipino helper have been confirmed among the dead, and dozens of migrant workers remain missing. An outdoor prayer meeting in central Hong Kong for the city’s Filipino community was attended by hundreds on the morning of Nov 30.

The police on Nov 29 detained Miles Kwan, 24, who was part of a group that launched a petition demanding an independent probe into possible corruption and a review of construction oversight, two sources familiar with the matter said. Reuters could not establish whether he had been arrested.

The police did not respond on Nov 30 to a request for comment.

The online petition promoted by the group drew more than 10,000 signatures by the afternoon of Nov 29 before it was closed.

A second petition with the same demands was launched soon after by a Tai Po resident who is living overseas. That petition had more than 2,700 signatures as at Nov 30. “The government owes Hongkongers genuine, explicit accountability,” it said.

The blaze that ripped through seven residential towers near the border with mainland China has stunned Hong Kong, and the authorities have

launched criminal and corruption investigations.

China’s national security authorities have warned people against using the disaster to “plunge Hong Kong back into the chaos” of 2019, when massive pro-democracy protests challenged Beijing and triggered a political crisis.

“We sternly warn the anti-China disruptors who attempt to ‘disrupt Hong Kong through disaster’. No matter what methods you use, you will certainly be held accountable and strictly punished.”

Fire alarms not working properly

The police have arrested 11 people in connection with the blaze as they investigate possible corruption and the use of unsafe materials for the renovations.

Rescue operations ended on Nov 28, though the police say they may find more bodies as they comb through the hazardous, burnt-out buildings in coming weeks.

The fire started on the afternoon of Nov 26 and rapidly engulfed seven of the eight 32-storey blocks at the complex that were wrapped in bamboo scaffolding and green mesh and layered with foam insulation for the renovations.

The authorities have said the fire alarms at the complex, home to more than 4,600 people, had not been working properly.

The fire is Hong Kong’s deadliest since 1948, when 176 people died in a warehouse blaze.

Residents of Wang Fuk Court were told by the authorities in 2024 they faced “relatively low fire risks” after complaining about fire hazards posed by the renovations, the city’s Labour Department said.

They raised concerns that included the flammability of the protective green mesh contractors used to cover the bamboo scaffolding, a department spokesperson said.

A full search of all of the badly damaged buildings could take three to four weeks to complete, police said. REUTERS