Hong Kong apartment fire: couple survives by using wet towels

Refusing to evacuate, a couple in Hong Kong survived a massive apartment fire by hiding in their bathroom, using wet towels to cover their faces for hours until firefighters rescued them.

Tong Ping Moon first smelled smoke around 3 PM on 26/11/2024. Shortly after, a firefighter knocked on the door of his 10th-floor apartment in the Wang Fuk Court estate in Tai Po district, alerting him to a fire in a nearby building. The 74-year-old man and his wife initially decided not to evacuate, believing they were safe. However, the smoke quickly thickened.

The couple then called for help and took refuge in their bathroom, using wet towels to cover their faces to avoid inhaling toxic smoke seeping through the door cracks. Firefighters rescued them around 6 PM. They are currently staying at a school serving as a temporary shelter, according to the New York Times on 27/11/2024.

"We were incredibly lucky. It was pitch dark. If we had to find our own way out, we would not have survived," Tong recounted.

A man named Wong cried out as he watched the building burn, his wife still trapped inside. *Reuters*

The Tai Po fire began in a high-rise building in the mid-afternoon. The flames spread quickly, forcing many residents to flee or call for emergency assistance. Officials have not specified how many residents were trapped inside the burning building. Some who escaped stood outside around midnight, watching firefighters try to contain the raging blaze.

Sze Kam Sang quietly clutched a small blanket, standing in the crowd watching the buildings engulfed in flames. "How can I sleep when my home is burning down?" he asked. The man, in his 70s, has lived in Wang Fuk Court for about 40 years. He was at a doctor's appointment when his wife, who works nearby, informed him of the fire. He hoped the fire had not yet reached his 19th-floor apartment, as the lower floors were already submerged in fire.

Sze noted that the apartment complex had experienced a few minor fires over the years, but none of this magnitude. He mentioned that the building was undergoing its first major maintenance project in 4 decades. It was enveloped in bamboo scaffolding, a material commonly used in Hong Kong construction projects.

Residents watched from a distance as flames engulfed buildings in the Wang Fuk Court estate in Tai Po district, Hong Kong, on 26/11/2024. *Chan Long Hei/Associated Press*

Early on 27/11/2024, the fire continued to spread through the 32-story apartment buildings, sending thick smoke billowing into the sky. Bamboo scaffolding cracked and ignited, sending sparks flying. Dozens of fire trucks and ambulances filled the area, their emergency lights flashing. At a press conference that morning, the Hong Kong Fire Services Department reported that at least 44 people died, 279 people are missing, and 45 critical cases were transferred to hospitals in the special administrative region for treatment. Authorities have brought the fire under control in 4 of the 7 affected buildings.

According to BBC, Wang Fuk Court consists of 8 towers. Mui Siu-fung, a Tai Po district councilor, confirmed that 7 buildings were affected by the fire. The 2021 census indicated that the estate has over 1,900 apartments, housing approximately 4,600 residents. The towers, built in 1983, were undergoing renovation, with their exteriors covered by bamboo scaffolding and construction netting. Videos circulating online showed the rapid spread of flames across the bamboo scaffolding.

A preliminary investigation found the fire's rapid spread to be unusual. The use of highly flammable polystyrene material around windows is believed to be one of the contributing factors to this situation.

Wang Fuk Court began housing residents in 1983 under a local government assistance program. The estate management approved a renovation project valued at over 42 million USD for the buildings last year. Hong Kong is one of the few regions globally that still uses bamboo for construction scaffolding. The special administrative region's government began gradually phasing out this material in March to enhance workplace safety, following 22 fatalities related to bamboo scaffolding recorded between 2019 and 2024.