LIVE: Scene from Hong Kong as fire in high-rise buildings kills 13

[putnam6]

LIVE: Scene from Hong Kong as fire in high-rise buildings kills 13

HONG KONG (AP) — A fire spread across seven high-rise apartment buildings in a Hong Kong housing complex, killing 13 people and leaving others still trapped, in the city’s worst blaze in years.
Nine people were declared dead at the scene and four others who were sent to the hospital were later confirmed dead, authorities told reporters. At least 15 others were injured, and about 700 people have been evacuated to temporary shelters.
The raging fire sent up a column of flames and thick smoke as it spread quickly on bamboo scaffolding and construction netting that had been set up around the exterior of the housing complex in Tai Po district, in the New Territories. Records show the housing complex consisted of eight buildings with almost 2,000 apartments housing about 4,800 people.

It wasn’t immediately known what caused the fire. Officials said that it started at the external scaffolding of one of the buildings and later spread to inside the building and also to nearby buildings, likely aided by windy conditions. The department said that it received “numerous” calls requesting assistance and some residents remained trapped as of Wednesday night.

[quintessentone]

At first I thought it was fake news, just horrible for those people. RIP to those that lost their lives. Are the buildings not built to stop fire spread?

[FlyersFan]

China gov't will blame American military infiltration or some such thing.   Watch.

[RazorV66]

It appears they were using bamboo scaffolding.

Bamboo? Really Bamboo?

Well still no high rise skyscraper has collapsed due to fire in the history of the world.

https://www.tbsnews.net/world/hong-kongs...ng-1295691

The fire erupted at Wang Fuk Court, a major public housing estate built in 1983 and home to around 4,600 residents. All eight of its 31-storey blocks were undergoing renovation and were completely wrapped in bamboo scaffolding when the flames began to spread.
 
Although investigators have not yet determined the cause of the Tai Po fire, officials say the blaze's rapid spread across the bamboo structures and onto neighbouring buildings will be central to the ongoing probe.

[BeTheGoddess]

China gov't will blame American military infiltration or some such thing.   Watch.

No no no, its the fault of the British, they were the ones overinflating the property market.

Look back further.

[BeTheGoddess]

It appears they were using bamboo scaffolding.

Bamboo? Really Bamboo?

Well still no high rise skyscraper has collapsed due to fire in the history of the world.

https://www.tbsnews.net/world/hong-kongs...ng-1295691

You really dont know bamboo, do you? just because you're a loser-boi that could not build there own dwelling out of bamboo, doesnt mean half a billion people in SE Asia cant.

WTC fell down. Petronus towers stand strong.

[andy06shake]

Oh my God, it's like Grenfell Tower x 3 blocks now?

Godspeed to the firefighters tackling the blaze.

I can't really tell if they have it under control or it's getting worse.

[Maxmars]

I find the idea of fighting this fire to be daunting and more than a little frightening.

While hindsight offers many diversions from the tragedy, and there must be a more realistic
cause than "bamboo scaffolding."

I don't know how important this is to the Chinese government, but I suspect it is to the people who lived there... and died there.

High-density living has a number of great risks... this is just one.

[andy06shake]

Are the buildings not built to stop fire spread?

Theoretically, yes.

More like contain until the fire can be brought under control and extinguished. 

But if there is cladding on the outside or other materials being used. 

Let's hope it's not flammable or of a better flame-resistant caliber than the likes of Grenfell Tower in West London. 

Because contractors have been known to take certain liberties.

Especially so where the likes of low-cost housing in concerned.

Apparently, the fire has been linked to starting on the scaffolding.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c2emg1kj1klt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grenfell_Tower_fire

[quintessentone]

Theoretically, yes.

More like contain until the fire can be brought under control and extinguished. 

But if there is cladding on the outside or other materials being used. 

Let's hope it's not flammable or of a better flame-resistant caliber than the likes of Grenfell Tower in West London. 

Because contractors have been known to take certain liberties.

Especially so where the likes of low-cost housing in concerned.

Apparently, the fire has been linked to starting on the scaffolding.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c2emg1kj1klt
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grenfell_Tower_fire

Sad and tragic as it seems most residents were the elderly and the firefighting is sorely inadequate to handle these types of fires.

"There have been reports by residents in some local media that fire alarms did not sound."

"The Hong Kong fire department has classified the blaze as a level five alarm - the highest in severity."

"Local media reported that explosions could be heard inside the building and fire hoses could not easily reach the higher levels."

What we know about the Hong Kong apartment fires