“The community is reeling, and some are angry: police suspect the fire was caused by “grossly negligent” action,” reports our correspondent Helen Davidson, who has speaking to devastated residents at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district. Subscribe to Guardian News on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/user/guardianwires?sub_confirmation=1 Police have alleged unsafe scaffolding and foam materials used during maintenance work may have been behind the rapid spread of a devastating fire at a group of residential tower blocks that has killed at least 75 people and left more than 250 missing. There have been long-running complaints about the renovation, including allegations the alarms were switched off months ago by construction workers, and that workers smoked on site. The fire appears to have spread in part because the buildings were sheathed in bamboo scaffolding, a traditional building material that the authorities have been phasing out for safety reasons. Officials said they will also look at materials used in the buildings’ exterior they say may have contributed. A taskforce has been set up to investigate the cause of the fire. More than 900 people have been evacuated to temporary shelters as the rescue work continues. #hongkongfire #hkfire #taipo #wangfuk #hongkon
The devastating aftermath of Hong Kong's deadly fire
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“The community is reeling, and some are angry: police suspect the fire was caused by “grossly negligent” action,” reports our correspondent Helen Davidson, who has speaking to devastated residents at the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district. Subscribe to Guardian News on YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/user/guardianwires?sub_confirmation=1 Police have alleged unsafe scaffolding and foam materials used during maintenance work may have been behind the rapid spread of a devastating fire at a group of residential tower blocks that has killed at least 75 people and left more than 250 missing. There have been long-running complaints about the renovation, including allegations the alarms were switched off months ago by construction workers, and that workers smoked on site. The fire appears to have spread in part because the buildings were sheathed in bamboo scaffolding, a traditional building material that the authorities have been phasing out for safety reasons. Officials said they will also look at materials used in the buildings’ exterior they say may have contributed. A taskforce has been set up to investigate the cause of the fire. More than 900 people have been evacuated to temporary shelters as the rescue work continues. #hongkongfire #hkfire #taipo #wangfuk #hongkon
