‘Broken hearts’ and curdling fury as Hong Kong mourns fire victims
Thousands of mourners showed up with white flowers to commemorate the victims of the city’s deadliest fire in decades as forensic workers continued the brutal process of removing bodies from the blackened towers.
Some whispered prayers, others stood silently and stared at the burnt shells of the towers, tears streaming down their faces.
Affected resident Ms Kwok and her son revisit the site of their now demolished house.Credit: Daniel Ceng
As Hong Kong enters its second official day of mourning, there is a chilling anger about how this disaster happened and how it came to come at such a heavy cost in human life.
Handwritten notes placed among growing piles of flowers placed blame on the corrupt system, calling for justice and accountability for those responsible.
One read: “The problem is in the system and God is watching.”
The death toll rose to 146 on Sunday night (AEDT) as investigators found more bodies in burnt buildings and 44 of the dead were yet to be identified. There is still no news from 150 people. At least one more body was removed from the towers on Sunday morning. South China Morning Post reported.
Indonesian domestic help Alidia cries as she mourns those killed in the fire.Credit: Daniel Ceng
The fire has been compared to the Grenfell Tower fire in London, which killed 72 people in June 2017, and triggered similar accusations of lax safety standards and corruption.
For more than a year, bamboo scaffolding covered with green netting covered the facade of Wang Fuk towers. The site has been inspected 16 times for safety and authorities have issued six improvement notices.
The cause of the fire has not been confirmed, but Hong Kong authorities arrested 11 people involved in the renovation of the towers on suspicion that netting and the use of Styrofoam in renovation materials accelerated the fire.
Among those who laid flowers at the site on Sunday were Hong Kongers, as well as members of the Indonesian and Filipino communities; many of them were staying with domestic workers on their first day off since the tragedy.
The mourners left flowers for the victims of the Tai Po fire and had emotional moments.Credit: Daniel Ceng
The death toll includes at least seven Indonesian workers and one Filipino, among the 119 Indonesians and 82 Filipinos who authorities believe lived and worked in the towers.
Yani, a 30-year-old Indonesian domestic worker, cried as she remembered her friend who died in a fire in Indonesia, leaving behind her five-year-old son. They came from the same village and had been friends since childhood.
“The whole community is heartbroken,” he said. “They came here to make money and lost their lives.”
Candy Chan, who has lived in the Tai Po neighborhood for 30 years and has friends who lost family members in the fires, said people have difficulty understanding how this could happen and want to be held accountable.
People lay flowers near the site to mourn the victims of the deadly fire in Wang Fuk Court.Credit: Chan Long Hei/AP
“This is a tragedy caused by some human error. I can’t imagine why this is happening in Hong Kong,” he said. “I truly believe there must be someone [held] responsible for this.”
Amid the pain, remnants of the political dissent that splintered in Hong Kong five years ago amid Beijing’s national security crackdown were simmering beneath the surface.
This coalesced around the Hong Kong government’s decision to phase out the use of traditional bamboo scaffolding, long a feature of the city’s skyline, in favor of metal materials used in construction in mainland China.
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“It is the net that causes the fire, not the bamboo. The Hong Kong government disregards human life. They are a force that kills people, just like the terrible CCP. Never use metal scaffolding,” he said in a note left among the flowers on Sunday, referring to the Chinese Communist Party.
Since 2020, hundreds of pro-democracy figures, opposition groups, media figures and trade unionists have been arrested and jailed on sedition charges under national security laws imposed by Beijing that have eliminated dissent in Hong Kong.
Police on Saturday arrested 24-year-old college student Miles Kwan on sedition charges after he filed a petition outlining four demands of the Hong Kong government, including an independent investigation into possible corruption, Reuters reported.
Police maintained a strong presence around the towers and on Friday ordered the dismantling of the community-focused donation centre, where hundreds of people had gathered to hand out clothes, food and bedding. Later, police tents were set up in the area.
The donation hub emerged organically, using the same methods of mobilization, social media and Signal chat groups that pro-democracy protesters used to organize massively to challenge Beijing’s tightening grip on the city in 2019.
pro-Beijing newspaper Tai Kung Pao He said “remnants of black-clad rioters and pro-democracy activists are mingling with well-intentioned citizens” and that police are concerned they are hijacking disaster aid “to sow discord and carry out anti-China conspiracies.”
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