HONG KONG: Hong Kong on Saturday mourned the 128 people known to have died in a massive fire at a high-rise apartment complex, a toll that is likely to rise with 150 still missing days after the disaster. Authorities have arrested 11 people in connection with the city’s worst blaze in nearly 80 years as they investigate possible corruption and the use of unsafe materials during renovations at the Wang Fuk Court complex.

Authorities have said the fire alarms at the Wang Fuk Court estate, home to more than 4,600 people, were ‘defective and not working properly’. Hong Kong leader John Lee, other officials and civil servants, all dressed in black, stood in silence for three minutes early on Saturday outside the central government offices, where flags were lowered to half-staff. Condolence books have been set up at 18 points around the former British colony for the public to pay their respects.

Rescue operations at the site in the district of Tai Po, near the border with mainland China, concluded on Friday, though police say they may find more bodies as they comb through the hazardous, burnt-out buildings in coming weeks.

Police revised down the number of people unaccounted for to 150 from 200 on Saturday, after confirming with some relatives that they had managed to reconnect with loved ones they initially reported as missing. Hundreds of officers deployed to search for remains found no further bodies but rescued three cats and a turtle, police officials told a press conference.

The fire started on Wednesday afternoon and rapidly engulfed seven of the eight 32-storey blocks at the complex, which were wrapped in bamboo scaffolding and green mesh and layered with foam insulation for the renovations.

Mainland China on Saturday ordered a nationwide investigation of fire risks at high-rise buildings, especially residential blocks undergoing renovation. Hong Kong’s anti-corruption body said that it had arrested three more people. They are aged between 52 and 68 and were in charge of the contractor of the renovation project at the complex.

Published in Dawn, November 30th, 2025