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Jess Ma

The legal team for an independent committee examining the cause of Hong Kong’s deadly Tai Po fire has recommended that authorities gradually phase out bamboo scaffolding in favour of metal replacements, among other proposals ranging from legislative reform to measures to curb bid-rigging.
The suggestions were outlined in 627 pages of closing submissions from the committee’s lawyers on Friday, concluding hearings that started in March to examine the Wang Fuk Court fire. The blaze last November killed 168 people and displaced about 5,000 residents.
One recommendation urged authorities to consider moving away from bamboo and combustible plastic wraps to avoid accelerating the spread of fire once material was burning.
“We therefore recommend exploring (and possibly funding and subsidising) a potential transition away from traditional bamboo scaffolding and combustible plastic wraps,” the committee’s counsel wrote.
The suggestion ran counter to previous testimonies from fire experts and firefighters who said that while burning bamboo could release pyrolysis gas that was flammable and could contribute to a fire, metal scaffolding could also pose risks if intense heat caused it to deform.
The committee’s lawyers had based their suggestion on evidence showing the heat generated in the Wang Fuk Court blaze had caused pyrolysis in the bamboo scaffolding, which then contributed to the intensity and upwards spread of the fire.
However, the committee counsel cautioned that moving away from the use of the long-standing material would be complex and possibly contentious, adding that an outright ban would have “significant financial and logistical consequences”.
Fire experts and serving firefighters analysed the role of bamboo scaffolding in the Tai Po fire during the committee’s hearing over the past four months.
Government expert Richard Yuen Kwok-kit, chair professor of architectural engineering at City University, had testified on June 24 that the use of non-fire-retardant scaffolding mesh had caused the fire to spread to combustible materials that would otherwise not have been involved in the blaze.
These included bamboo sticks, which once burned, would emit large amounts of heat quickly.


Committee-appointed expert Professor Jiang Liming of Polytechnic University said a day later that while bamboo itself was not easy to ignite, intense heat during a fire test would cause bamboo sticks to evaporate and release pyrolysis gas. This would in turn cause the bamboo to contribute to the fire.
Deputy Chief Fire Officer Sunny Wong Sze-lut testified in April that while metal scaffolding could not catch fire, its structure could be altered under high temperatures. Coupled with its heavier weight, metal scaffolding could be a greater hazard than bamboo.
The committee’s lawyers also recommended that authorities empower the Fire Services Department to require case-specific engineering risk assessments when warranted for renovation projects in high-rise buildings.
Besides long-term changes to how authorities should supervise building renovation projects and relevant engineering standards, the committee’s lawyers also made individual suggestions to a range of departments directly involved in supervising the renovation project and firefighting.
The Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit was urged to abolish all prearranged scheduling or liaison notices for safety audits and complaint investigations, and establish a minimum physical inspection rate, after hearings revealed that the unit mainly relied on reading contractors’ reports in its checks.
The committee lawyers said the Fire Services Department “must take a more proactive approach” to physically examine fire safety installations, rather than relying on contractors’ verbal assurances and visual checks, as well as review frontline entry control procedures.
The Labour Department was asked to revise its enforcement guidelines to accept photographic and video evidence for complaints and prosecution and review its stance that “building materials” fall outside its remit.
The closing submission also included a dedicated section for suggestions on reducing bid-rigging and other misconduct during the tender process.
These suggestions included the Urban Renewal Authority expanding its “Smart Tender” programme to private building owners and deploying algorithms to detect bid-rigging in real time, and requiring independent consultants engaged in renovation projects to take on integrity-vetting duties.
Turning their focus beyond departments, the committee’s lawyers also suggested the government consider whether a higher in-person attendance threshold, such as 10 per cent, was needed for major procurement decisions in housing estates.
Other suggestions on how housing estate owners’ meetings should function included considering a statutory cap of proxy votes for large-scale maintenance decisions, bolstering statutory verification duties on property management firms on proxy votes, and considering transitioning to a centralised electronic voting system.


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Tai Po fire inquiry legal team calls for bamboo scaffolding to be phased out

Bamboo scaffolding on the exterior of the Wang Fuk Court towers in January. Photo: Elson Li

Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po. Photo: Jelly Tse

Deceitful firms mostly to blame for deadly Tai Po blaze, government counsel says

Government counsel Jenkin Suen (centre) arrives for Thursday’s session of the inquiry. Photo: Edmond So

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Lawyer Aaron Chan is representing the director of China Status Development and Engineering at the  hearing. Photo: Sun Yeung

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Secretary for Security Chris Tang.  Photo: Dickson Lee

District councillor Peggy Wong has submitted written testimony to the committee. .Photo: Elson Li

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Other recommendations outlined in 627 pages of closing submissions include legislative reform and measures to curb bid-rigging


Other recommendations outlined in 627 pages of closing submissions include legislative reform and measures to curb bid-rigging.


Hong Kong fires and safety

Fire Services Department ( Hong Kong)

China

Tai Po fire inquiry legal team calls for bamboo scaffolding to be phased out

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Other recommendations outlined in 627 pages of closing submissions include legislative reform and measures to curb bid-rigging

Other recommendations outlined in 627 pages of closing submissions include legislative reform and measures to curb bid-rigging