Hong Kong - Major fire engulf several high-rise buildings, at least 13 deaths, 26 November 2025

[MollyHarps]

Updated now to 75.. hundreds remain misding this is just so sad.

Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 128 as officials say fire alarms not working properly

Officials are yet to determine the cause of the blaze that ripped through a high-rise residential complex on Wednesday.

www.bbc.co.uk

I think at this stage we can presume most of the missing will also be deceased

 

[CatsnChickens]

A history of Hong Kong’s unique bamboo scaffolding

Is it destined to be yet another dying art?

www.timeout.com

Bamboo is a renewable resource as it regrows if planted, when it comes to iron, steel and other metals, unless they are recycled after use, then when the mines get empty those metals will be gone forever.

Yes I understand that but not only is bamboo highly flammable it is also hollow.

It turns into a very effective chimney to speed up the rate of burn.

 

[Via Marple]

A video posted by a local Hong Kong media outlet Boomhead, shows the early stage of the fire as it spread in the first building that caught fire.

859K views · 5.4K reactions | 【宏福苑五級火 起火一刻網片】 ＝＝＝請支持蚊型媒體持狹縫中求存 ＝＝＝轉數快電話號碼：6464 8848 (Boomhead Media Co) 大埔宏福苑今午發生五級大火，網上有片段顯示，下午2：51分，宏昌閣低層棚架率先發現火種，數分鐘內一發不可收拾，蔓延至其他棚架及單位，有途人大叫「火燭呀！」、「點解成棟大廈冇警鐘㗎？」、「工程人員做乜㗎，工地嗰啲，個棚著緊火樓喎」、「成棟大廈冇警鐘搞錯呀！」。 拍攝者位於元洲仔里，元洲仔

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[Herat]

A video posted by a local Hong Kong media outlet Boomhead, shows the early stage of the fire as it spread in the first building that caught fire.

859K views · 5.4K reactions | 【宏福苑五級火 起火一刻網片】 ＝＝＝請支持蚊型媒體持狹縫中求存 ＝＝＝轉數快電話號碼：6464 8848 (Boomhead Media Co) 大埔宏福苑今午發生五級大火，網上有片段顯示，下午2：51分，宏昌閣低層棚架率先發現火種，數分鐘內一發不可收拾，蔓延至其他棚架及單位，有途人大叫「火燭呀！」、「點解成棟大廈冇警鐘㗎？」、「工程人員做乜㗎，工地嗰啲，個棚著緊火樓喎」、「成棟大廈冇警鐘搞錯呀！」。 拍攝者位於元洲仔里，元洲仔

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Astonishing how quickly it just ran up the side of that scaffolding and caught everything else there on fire.

 

[Herat]

Astonishing how quickly it just ran up the side of that scaffolding and caught everything else there on fire.

If I lived in one of the other buildings, I don't know if would have evacuated at the first sight of the fire engines.

When you see all those long bamboo poles falling from the scaffolding, you can see how incredibly dangerous this fire was for the firemen on the ground, too.

 

[Herat]

The contractor for the remodel had been warned about the fire hazard as late as last week. WOW

"Authorities had inspected the site several times and had warned the contractor about the fire hazard, including as recently as last week, the Labour Department said. The construction company is involved in 11 other residential building projects in Hong Kong, according to the government."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-11-27/death-toll-from-hong-kong-tower-block-fire-rises-to-at-least-65?srnd=homepage-americas

 

[Charlot123]

Horrible situation. On top of everything, many didn't hear the fire alarms and there is question about their reliability.

https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/hong-kong-tai-po-apartment-fire-11-27-25-intl-hnk

"One man recalled hearing people screaming for help on Wednesday afternoon, before seeing smoke billowing outside his window. Others have questioned the reliability of the complex’s fire alarms."

 

[Via Marple]

The contractor for the remodel had been warned about the fire hazard as late as last week. WOW

"Authorities had inspected the site several times and had warned the contractor about the fire hazard, including as recently as last week, the Labour Department said. The construction company is involved in 11 other residential building projects in Hong Kong, according to the government."

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-11-27/death-toll-from-hong-kong-tower-block-fire-rises-to-at-least-65?srnd=homepage-americas

The question is, why did they simply warn, but not take action? Fine? Suspend work? Order to remove?

There's whisper that the construction company was "well connected". Now that Hong Kong has adopted a lot of "Chinese characteristics", it's not uncommon that such abnormalities are allowed to exist. The more outspoken residents in those buildings, had been complaining to authorities about corruption by the owner committee, about the fire hazard, since last year.

Take that as MOO until I find local reports and have time to translate..

 

[airportwoman]

A history of Hong Kong’s unique bamboo scaffolding

Is it destined to be yet another dying art?

www.timeout.com

Bamboo is a renewable resource as it regrows if planted, when it comes to iron, steel and other metals, unless they are recycled after use, then when the mines get empty those metals will be gone forever.

It's also very sturdy.

The fire started in mid-afternoon, when most people were at work or school, so the casualty rate will be much lower than if it happened at night.

 

[airportwoman]

If I lived in one of the other buildings, I don't know if would have evacuated at the first sight of the fire engines.

When you see all those long bamboo poles falling from the scaffolding, you can see how incredibly dangerous this fire was for the firemen on the ground, too.

And people who were escaping as well.

 

[SouthAussie]

The fire might have begun in the bamboo scaffolding, but the real problem appears to be the polystyrene covering the windows, a very flammable material.

As they suspect that the foam boards were substandard, it may be that the foam did not include a fire retardant as it is supposed to do.


Yes, foam board insulation is flammable.
However, Neopor’s graphite polystyrene (GPS), which is used in Halo products, is treated with a fire retardant which greatly reduces flame spread and helps the fire to self-extinguish once the source of fire is removed.
Thus, Neopor, and all Halo products, are approved for the construction of homes and buildings across Canada and the USA.

Is Foam Board Insulation Flammable? | BuildwithHalo.com

Worried about fire spread and damage? Learn how your insulation could be increasing fire risk in your projects - and the solution. Find out more now.

buildwithhalo.com

We can bring you more now from that statement from Eric Chan, the chief secretary to the Hong Kong administration.
He says police seized "suspected substandard foam boards" from the Wang F u k Court - where the fire broke out.

Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 128 as officials say fire alarms not working properly

Officials are yet to determine the cause of the blaze that ripped through a high-rise residential complex on Wednesday.

www.bbc.com

 

[Herat]

Interesting article about how ubiquitous bamboo scaffolding is in Hong Kong

https://www.cnn.com/2025/11/27/world/bamboo-scaffolding-scrutiny-hong-kong-fire-intl-hnk

 

[Via Marple]

A video posted by a local Hong Kong media outlet Boomhead, shows the early stage of the fire as it spread in the first building that caught fire.

859K views · 5.4K reactions | 【宏福苑五級火 起火一刻網片】 ＝＝＝請支持蚊型媒體持狹縫中求存 ＝＝＝轉數快電話號碼：6464 8848 (Boomhead Media Co) 大埔宏福苑今午發生五級大火，網上有片段顯示，下午2：51分，宏昌閣低層棚架率先發現火種，數分鐘內一發不可收拾，蔓延至其他棚架及單位，有途人大叫「火燭呀！」、「點解成棟大廈冇警鐘㗎？」、「工程人員做乜㗎，工地嗰啲，個棚著緊火樓喎」、「成棟大廈冇警鐘搞錯呀！」。 拍攝者位於元洲仔里，元洲仔

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The local video had since been fact checked by BBC. FYI.

Video shows speed fire spreads in Hong Kong tower block

Footage geolocated by BBC Verify show the blaze taking hold in Wang Cheong House.

bbc.com

 

[Rikissa]

BBC.co.uk reported at about 9 a.m. GMT (4 a.m. in New York) 28 November:

• At least 128 have died, 79 are known to be injured, and 89 bodies have still not been identified

Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 128 as officials say fire alarms not working properly

Officials are yet to determine the cause of the blaze that ripped through a high-rise residential complex on Wednesday.

www.bbc.com

Among those still missing are about 30 Filipino and Indonesian migrant domestic workers.

 

[Herat]

The fire alarms had been deliberately turned off because the remodeling required the workers to use the fire escapes to acccess areas of the work.

And, workers were smoking while working on the flammable scaffolding with the highly flammable mesh and plastic panels nearby.

From this article by BBC news, there was little regard for safety protocols, especially fire safety. Honestly, the residents who did not realize the buildings were on fire had little warning and little chance of escape

According to BBC News:

"Several residents have revealed in interviews that the fire alarm did not sound when the fire broke out. Authorities said on Friday that they had checked the fire alarms in all eight blocks and found that they were not working properly.

Kiko Ma, who owns an apartment at Wang Fuk Court, says the alarms had been turned off amid renovation works, as construction workers regularly used fire escapes to get in and out of the building.

Ms Ma lives in Canada with her family, but visits the Hong Kong apartment several times a year.

"This was preventable... A lot of people did not do their duties," the 33-year-old tells the BBC, claiming that the renovation firm used "poor quality, flammable materials".

Residents often saw construction workers smoking and found cigarette butts along their window ledges, she adds.

"People kept asking what would happen if there was a fire. Everyone was very worried."

Hong Kong fire: Anger and unanswered questions

Questions are mounting as to how the deadly fire spread so rapidly - and who should be held responsible.

www.bbc.com

 

[Herat]

As reported earlier, the company in charge of the renovations of these towers also is involved in at least 11 other major projects in the Hong Kong area.

This would suggest it's a very successful company and may have extremely influential friends in the local government who do not hold them to established standards. As we were told from yesterday, the local inspectors had noted poor fire prevention practices multiple times, last of which was last week, but there appears to have been no impact on improving the safety to comply with the local regulations.

I expect to hear a great deal more about this as the lapses and deliberate violations of safety procedures and standards are investigated.

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1994540829046723047

RIP to the Victims.

 

[Via Marple]

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A photographer named Austin Bell had taken photos of Wang F u k Court before the fire. The ones taken in 2024 were quite poignant, when all 8 buildings were covered in green netting from top to bottom. With hindsight, you wonder how anyone could think that was alright? Even living inside the buildings must have been intolerable.

 

[SouthAussie]

View this content on Instagram

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A photographer named Austin Bell had taken photos of Wang F u k Court before the fire. The ones taken in 2024 were quite poignant, when all 8 buildings were covered in green netting from top to bottom. With hindsight, you wonder how anyone could think that was alright? Even living inside the buildings must have been intolerable.

And he posted a video of those same buildings after the fire. Netting burned off on most buildings, partially burned off on some.

View this content on Instagram

View this content on Instagram

 

[VioletLilac]

What was the green netting for?