Hong Kong fire: Death toll rises to 44, three arrested on manslaughter charges; top developments

The death toll in the massive fire in multiple high rises in Hong Kong rose to 44, with over 270 hundred still missing. Later, several media outlets reported arrest of 3 people in connection to the fire.

Chinese President Xi Jinping expressed condolences and urged the city to contain the disaster swiftly.

State media reported that Xi called on authorities to “make every effort” to put out the fire and minimise further loss of life.




“Xi Jinping expressed condolences for those who died in the major fire at a residential estate in Tai Po District, New Territories, Hong Kong, including the firefighter who died in the line of duty,” it said.

Here are the top developments

Toll rises to 44

The death toll in the incident was revised to 44, after initial count of 36, while 279 are reported missing.
Three arrested
Police have arrested three men on suspicion of manslaughter in connection with the blaze, as reported by South China Morning Post. Police announced the arrests in a brief, one-sentence advisory that did not detail the suspects’ alleged actions, and said more information would be provided at a later press conference.
Rescue ops ongoing
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee confirmed the rising toll and said that search teams were still tracing missing residents as smoke continued to billow from the charred towers.

The Fire Services Department said it received the first emergency call at 2:51 pm local time and escalated the blaze to a No 4 alarm at 3:34 pm, one level below the highest emergency classification. Dozens of engines, ambulances and rescue teams were deployed as smoke poured from the towers, which house around 2,000 apartments and were undergoing renovation work.

“Police and the Fire Services Department have already set up a dedicated investigation team to investigate the cause of the fire,” said John Lee, Hong Kong's chief executive, as quoted by AP.

Witness account Witnesses described seeing residents gathered on overhead walkways as flames climbed rapidly up buildings covered in bamboo scaffolding. The Tai Po district, home to nearly 300,000 people, is among Hong Kong’s most tightly packed urban zones.

Roads around the area remain closed, with bus routes diverted as firefighters continue sweeping each floor to locate survivors. More details are awaited as authorities verify the number of missing residents and assess structural safety before entering deeper sections of the complex.

Styrofoam fanned the flames

The blaze tore through the Wang Fuk Court housing complex in Tai Po on Wednesday, with flames and thick smoke engulfing the 32-storey blocks for more than ten hours.

Fire Services Director Andy Yeung Yan-kin said officers found styrofoam inside the burning buildings, which he believes intensified the blaze. According to the South China Morning Post, the material allowed flames to race through corridors and ignite flats across multiple levels. Yeung noted that firefighters could only enter from the ground floor as many floors were still burning well into the early hours of Thursday. One of the biggest challenges, he said, was the number of levels alight simultaneously.

Security Secretary Chris Tang called the fire’s speed “suspicious”. Preliminary checks, he said, showed that the building’s netting and waterproof tarpaulin burned far faster than regulated materials. “We found that the netting and waterproof tarpaulin on the building walls, once ignited, spread flames much faster than they should. This is unusual,” Tang said. He confirmed that police and fire officers would conduct a full investigation, including a criminal probe into any irregularities.

Read more: What caused the Hong Kong fire that killed 36 and left hundreds missing