Deaths among 13 households still missing in Tai Po fire not ruled out: welfare chief
Households remain uncontactable more than 10 days after Tai Po inferno as government plans to fast‑track smoking ban at construction sites
Members of 13 households at the Hong Kong estate destroyed in an inferno remain uncontactable more than 10 days after the blaze, with the city’s labour and welfare chief not ruling out that all may have died.
Secretary for Labour and Welfare Chris Sun Yuk-han said the blaze at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po had prompted the government to consider expediting legal amendments to ban smoking at construction sites within about two months and to introduce a fixed penalty ticket system for the offence, instead of taking cases to court.
Sun revealed the grim figures on a television programme on Sunday, noting that while authorities had successfully contacted 1,971 of the estate’s 1,984 households, the remainder were unaccounted for.
When asked if it was possible members of the 13 households were killed in the fire, Sun said the possibility was not ruled out.
“We really hope to use all means to find these 13 households,” he said.
Sun added that the government’s “one social worker per household” initiative had now reached 99 per cent of residents, providing tailored support to survivors.