1 building to open briefly at Hong Kong fire-hit estate as death toll hits 156
Wang Chi House residents will be allowed to return home to retrieve valuables and personal belongings on a one-off visit
Residents from the sole unaffected residential block in Hong Kong’s blaze-ravaged Wang Fuk Court will be allowed into their homes on Wednesday and Thursday to collect their belongings, authorities have said, as the death toll rose to 156.
Police said five more bodies were found on Tuesday, with the death toll rising from 151 to 156. Of the total, 127 victims had been identified.
Wang Chi House residents would be allowed to return home to retrieve their valuables and personal belongings as a one-off, from 9am to 9pm on Wednesday and Thursday, police said.
They would be given 1½ hours to pack their belongings, accompanied by police officers, civil servants and social workers, with transport to be arranged to bring them from their temporary accommodation to Wang Fuk Court, authorities added.
Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-chiu earlier on Tuesday ordered the establishment of an independent review committee, chaired by a judge, into the blaze that engulfed seven buildings at the Tai Po estate last Wednesday.