TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The death toll for the deadly fire in Hong Kong climbs to 65, on Thursday, November 27, 2025, according to Al Jazeera. The fire that broke out on Wednesday occurred in an eight-building residential complex in the Tai Po district.
The deadly fire broke out around midday on Wednesday in a complex consisting of more than 1,900 apartments. The fire spread rapidly due to bamboo scaffolding installed on the exterior for renovation work, as reported by Anadolu.
Among the casualties is a firefighter, and hundreds remain missing.
Of the seven buildings engulfed in flames in the complex, estimated to house around 4,000 residents, four buildings have been successfully extinguished, with blazes at the others ongoing.
Police have detained three individuals, comprising two managers and a construction consultant engineer from the renovation company, on suspicion of "manslaughter."
Authorities stated that the bamboo scaffolding erected for renovation and the plastic foam insulation covering the windows significantly contributed to the rapid spread of the fire.
"We have reason to believe that the individuals responsible at the company were grossly negligent, which caused the fire to spread quickly and led to many fatalities," said Senior Inspector Eileen Chung Lai-yee.
Hong Kong Security Secretary Chris Tang stated that initial investigations indicated an unusually fast spread of the fire, primarily caused by the foam insulation material.
"We found that the material covering the building walls, the netting around the scaffolding, and the waterproof tarpaulin caused flames to spread much faster than would occur with materials that meet safety standards," he said.
Level 5 Fire Alarm
For the first time in 17 years, Hong Kong has issued a level 5 fire alarm, the highest level on the city's five-level scale.
Authorities reported that two neighboring complexes were also evacuated, and around 900 affected residents have taken refuge in eight temporary facilities.
Over 140 firefighting vehicles and over 800 emergency personnel and firefighters have been deployed to the scene of the incident.
The Transportation Department announced that the roads in the area have been closed due to the fire.
Chinese President Xi Jinping conveyed condolences to the Hong Kong government for the loss of lives and instructed the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office in Beijing to support the local government in their emergency response.
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu expressed deep condolences for the high number of casualties and injuries, extending sympathies to the families of the victims, and praying for the swift recovery of the injured.
He also held an emergency Cabinet meeting to coordinate the disaster response.
Lee, Hong Kong's leader, pledged that all major renovation projects will be promptly inspected, amid concerns about the scaffolding and netting used in the Wang Fuk apartment complex.
Chinese tech giant Tencent and the parent company of TikTok, ByteDance, are among the Chinese companies that announced they will donate millions of dollars in fire aid.
Meanwhile, all campaign activities for the scheduled Hong Kong legislative election on December 7 have been suspended amid firefighting efforts and recovery, Hong Kong Free Press reported.
Elderly Likely Struggled to Evacuate
Jiang Liming, a professor at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and a fire safety engineering expert, told Al Jazeera that the evacuation route at the Wang Fuk apartment complex seemed inadequate "because of the percentage of elderly people."
According to the 2021 census, nearly 40 percent of the 4,600 residents in the high-rise buildings are aged 65 and above.
"That's why we see the rising number of deaths," Jiang said.
"In the past, we’ve seen similar facade fires, but we haven’t seen fatalities because people can successfully evacuate from the building – but not from this one."
With fire services, building departments, and contractors responsible for various aspects of fire safety, this fatal fire is a "failure for multiple reasons," Jiang added.
"Bamboo scaffolding is combustible, definitely, and it enables this kind of wide spread over the facade," Jiang said, referring to reports of highly flammable scaffolding and nets used during maintenance work.
However, a construction site with "appropriate management" can use such scaffolding safely in some cases, Jiang said.
The main cause of this fire, he concluded, "is still unclear."
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