Thousands mourn as death toll rises to 146

It is understood that devastating fires in many high-rise buildings in Hong Kong have killed at least 146 people.

Police announced the death toll at a news conference on Sunday and warned that they “cannot rule out the possibility of more deaths.” They said 79 others were injured and 150 were missing.

Seven of the eight tower blocks of a residence in the northern Tai Po district caught fire quickly on Wednesday. Allegations that flammable materials on the building’s exterior fueled the fires have sparked outrage and concern.

On Sunday, thousands of people gathered at Wang Fook Court Building to mourn the victims, with the line stretching nearly 2 kilometers.

The death toll has been rising since the fire, and officials are working to recover and identify bodies.

The exact cause of the fire has not yet been determined. Eight people have been arrested on suspicion of corruption during the tower’s renovation, while three others are being held on charges of manslaughter.

The fire quickly spread upward and between neighborhoods and was not fully extinguished until Friday morning, requiring more than 2,000 firefighters to bring it under control.

That same day, police began entering the building to collect evidence. Authorities said the investigation could take three to four weeks.

Police official Tsang Shu-yin said on Sunday that police had so far completed searches of four of the towers.

The Indonesian consulate in Hong Kong said at least seven Indonesian citizens died in the fire, while the Philippine consulate said one Indonesian citizen died in the fire.

Firefighter He Weihao, 37, has been identified as one of the victims. He was found collapsed at the scene on Wednesday, about 30 minutes after contact was lost.

The fire department said the fire reached a maximum temperature of 500 degrees Celsius (932 degrees Fahrenheit). Twelve firefighters were injured battling the blaze.

Officials said the fire quickly spread throughout the neighborhood due to the presence of plastic mesh and other flammable materials on the exterior of the building.

The tower is also covered with bamboo scaffolding, a material commonly used in construction and renovation projects in Hong Kong. The fire sparked debate over whether it should continue to be used.

Some residents said they did not hear fire alarms when the fire broke out. Hong Kong’s fire department discovered that fire alarms in all eight blocks were not operating effectively.

The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) said those arrested in a corruption investigation included a director of an engineering company and a scaffolding subcontractor.

A police spokesman previously said they had reason to believe “gross negligence on the part of the person responsible for the company” caused the fire and caused it to spread “uncontrollably”.

The Hong Kong Buildings Department has suspended work on 30 private projects.

Police reportedly detained a 24-year-old man on Saturday on suspicion of sedition. He is part of a group petitioning for an independent investigation into the fire.

The fire was Hong Kong’s worst in more than 70 years, leading authorities in the region to Three days of mourning declaredstarting on Saturday.

Officials observed three minutes of silence to mark the start of the occasion, while Chinese and Hong Kong flags were flown at half-mast.

Thousands of people turned out to lay flowers, pray and leave handwritten messages for the victims.

According to the 2021 government census, Wang Fook Court was built in 1983 and has provided 1,984 apartments for approximately 4,600 residents.

It is estimated that nearly 40% of residents are at least 65 years old. Some have lived in affordable housing since it was built.

In 1948, Hong Kong suffered its second-worst fire on record, killing 176 people, caused by an explosion on the ground floor of a five-story warehouse. The deadliest was Happy Valley Racecourse in 1918, when more than 600 people died.