Hong Kong authorities have charged seven individuals and two companies with 25 offenses, including manslaughter and money laundering, in connection with the city's deadliest fire at Wang Fuk Court last November, which killed 168 people.
A fire at the Flourish Stay hotel in New Delhi on Wednesday killed at least 21 people, with more than 40 others hospitalized. Several victims were visitors from African countries seeking medical treatment.
Stories filled with tragic bravery, outrage at heedless officials and horror as loved ones perished were among those shared by 24 residents of the fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court estate, as they testified at a public hearing investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest blaze in decades. Over multiple sessions that began on March 19, some told the presiding committee how their repeated efforts to raise bid-rigging and safety concerns about the estate’s exterior renovation fell on deaf ears, well before the...
This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. The deputy director of the Home Affairs Department and the former head of the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit (ICU) are the latest Hong Kong officials to testify at a public hearing on Friday into the city’s deadliest blaze in decades. Their cross-examination will also conclude the fourth round of evidential hearings held by the...
This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. The deputy director of the Home Affairs Department and the former head of the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit (ICU) are the latest Hong Kong officials to testify at a public hearing on Friday into the city’s deadliest blaze in decades. Their cross-examination will also conclude the fourth round of evidential hearings held by the...
This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. The deputy director of the Home Affairs Department and the former head of the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit (ICU) were the latest Hong Kong officials to testify at a public hearing on the city’s deadliest blaze in decades. Their cross-examination on Friday concluded the fourth round of evidential hearings held by the government-appointed...
This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. The deputy director of the Home Affairs Department and the former head of the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit (ICU) are the latest Hong Kong officials to testify at a public hearing on Friday into the city’s deadliest blaze in decades. Their cross-examination will also conclude the fourth round of evidential hearings held by the...
Hong Kong authorities will launch a public consultation on new fire safety requirements and offences with severe penalties following the city's deadliest blaze in decades. Key proposals include elevating administrative measures like six-month alarm bell tests to legal requirements and increasing the maximum penalty for unauthorized fire equipment handling and false certificates from HK$50,000 to HK$3 million plus three years' imprisonment. The bill is targeted for submission to the Legislative Council by the end of 2026.
