Hong Kong towers engulfed in flames

A massive fire tore through Wang Fuk Court in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district, killing at least 55 people and leaving hundreds missing.

Transcript

00:00Flames raced up Hong Kong high-rises, strapping residents and turning a housing estate into

00:04a disaster zone.

00:06A massive fire tore through Wang Fu Court in Hong Kong's Tai Po District on November

00:1026, killing at least 65 people and leaving more than 200 missing.

00:14The blaze engulfed a cluster of eight residential towers with nearly 2,000 apartments, making

00:19it one of the city's deadliest disasters in decades.

00:22According to reports, at the time, the buildings were under renovation, wrapped in bamboo scaffolding

00:27and green safety netting.

00:28The scaffolding acted like fuel and by the time firefighters arrived, the fire had already

00:33climbed the bamboo and leapt across rocks.

00:36Residents who escaped were moved into temporary shelters while visuals of the towering flames

00:40and explosions inside the building went viral.

00:42According to reports, the Hong Kong Fire Department classified it as a level 5 fire, the highest

00:48category.

00:49It's been 17 years since the city last saw a blaze this severe.

00:53Firefighters say scorching temperatures inside the building slowed their ability to reach

00:56upper floors when people were trapped.

00:58A total of 128 fire trucks, 57 ambulances and 400 police officers were deployed.

01:04Among the dead is firefighter Ho Wai Ho, 37 years old with two others injured while battling

01:10the flames.

01:11While the exact cause is still under investigation, experts say the bamboo scaffolding and flammable

01:16debris on the exterior lightly accelerated the spread.

01:19The fire engineering division of the Hong Kong Institute of Engineers also pointed out to

01:23concerns about unsafe materials used on the building walls.

01:27Residents say they had complained about the safety netting for months, worried about construction

01:31workers smoking on the scaffolds and littering cigarette butts.

01:35Police have now arrested three construction officials on suspicion of manslaughter, alleging gross

01:39negligence.

01:41Investigators say materials found in the towers, including styrofoam in wall cavities, may have

01:45caused the fire to shoot through corridors and ignite flats floor by floor.

01:49Temporary shelters have been opened for hundreds of displaced families.

01:53Global condolences have poured in, including from China's President Xi Jinping, Japan, Germany,

01:58the UK, Canada and Taiwan.

02:00With the dead toll already at 55, the Wang Fu Co tragedy is now considered the worst fire in

02:05Hong Kong's modern history, a rare and catastrophic breach in the city known for its strict building

02:10safety standards.

02:11Law.