‘No alarm went off’: Hong Kong fire survivor recounts harrowing escape

HONG KONG – Mr Lau Yu Hung said he and his wife barely escaped in time.

Most of the windows in their apartment were covered with thin foam as part of extensive renovation works around their building. The 78-year-old retired resident happened to look out a bathroom window and spotted flames rising up the building next door, in what would become the

city’s worst fire in more than half a century.

Mr Lau Yu Hung was one of the lucky ones.

As firefighters continued to battle the blaze a day after it swept through Wang Fuk Court, a high-rise apartment complex in Hong Kong, the

number of deaths rose to at least 83

early on the morning of Nov 28. That toll could go much higher, as dozens of people remain unaccounted for.

Many of those missing were believed to be trapped on the

upper storeys of the buildings

, which were fairly typical of the apartment towers that crowd one of the world’s most densely populated cities.

Mr Lau Yu Hung said the fire moved with terrible speed as it appeared to climb up the tall apartment towers. He and his wife had to rush down multiple flights of stairs to get to safety, he said.

“Nobody warned us,” he added. “No alarm went off. We escaped by ourselves.”

Police Senior Superintendent Eileen Chung said the authorities suspect that the materials used on the exterior walls of the buildings, including protective netting and sheeting, did not meet fire safety standards.

In one of the buildings, foam boards known to be flammable were installed outside elevator lobby windows on every floor. Officials believe there was “gross negligence” on the part of those responsible for construction, “leading to this accident and the rapid spread of the fire and such serious casualties”, she added.

After escaping, Mr Lau Yu Hung joined dozens of people who gathered on Nov 27 behind a police cordon in a public area near the scorched apartment complex. They watched as firefighters atop tall ladders sprayed jets of water into the buildings, while smoke billowed from them.

Another of those watching was Mr Lau Wan King, a part-time minibus driver who was not a resident of the complex. He came to watch because his brother-in-law was missing.

His brother-in-law was a resident of the first building that caught fire, the 79-year-old said. He called his relative on his cellphone right after the fire was reported.

Mr Lau Wan King said his brother-in-law told him he was having trouble fleeing his apartment on the eighth floor because the building was already filled with smoke. Mr Lau said that was the last time they spoke. He has since been unable to reach him.

“There is not much hope now,” Mr Lau Wan King said, trying not to cry. He said he had been standing outside the cordon for 12 hours, waiting for news. NYTIMES