Hong Kong police have arrested a van driver after his vehicle collided with a taxi on a highway, killing two passengers, including an off-duty firefighter. The Fire Services Department said on Wednesday it was “deeply saddened” by the deaths of the 38-year-old from Kwun Tong fire station and his 35-year-old wife. The department extended its…
Hong Kong simply has not developed the right mindset with respect to fire safety. Unless prompt, effective action is taken, we could be looking at more tragedies like the Wang Fuk Court disaster in Tai Po. The numbers are stark and overwhelming, yet the context from which they have been derived is even more frightening….
Hong Kong authorities have slashed the time needed to send emergency mobile alerts to residents from an hour to 15 minutes under a HK$150 million (US$19 million) system, while messages can now be tailored to specific districts, the security chief has revealed. A hearing session into the deadly Wang Fuk Court fire in April had…
A 51-year-old hiker who went missing on Lantau Island has been found dead after a two-day search amid a heatwave in Hong Kong. Authorities launched a search for the man, surnamed Chan, on Thursday after his wife made a report to police that morning. She said he had not returned home after leaving for a…
Hong Kong’s Fire Services Department has given approval for 3,600 old low-rise residential buildings to install a new Internet of Things (IoT) smart fire alarm system as an alternative to traditional fire-safety equipment, following a successful pilot scheme in the first quarter of this year. The IoT-enabled system consists of detectors installed in individual flats…
Hong Kong authorities have launched a public consultation on overhauling fire safety regulations, six months after the city’s deadliest inferno in decades, proposing to expand firefighters’ law enforcement powers and impose additional responsibilities on management firms and contractors. The Security Bureau and the Fire Services Department on Tuesday began a one-month consultation exercise on proposed…
Hong Kong rescuers are continuing their search for two hikers who reportedly went missing in Sai Kung on Monday, after locating their 76-year-old companion early on Tuesday. Authorities said on Tuesday that a government helicopter had been deployed to locate the pair in the morning. Police said they received a report from members of a…
Hong Kong authorities are extending an operation targeting poorly maintained fire safety equipment for another two years, aiming to inspect 5,000 high-risk old buildings after an initial phase resulted in 75 prosecutions. Law Kin-san, acting senior divisional officer for policy at the Fire Services Department, said on Thursday that ad hoc checks on high-risk buildings…
Stories filled with tragic bravery, outrage at heedless officials and horror as loved ones perished were among those shared by 24 residents of the fire-ravaged Wang Fuk Court estate, as they testified at a public hearing investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest blaze in decades. Over multiple sessions that began on March 19, some told the presiding…
Hong Kong’s security chief has reaffirmed that fire services will act as the gatekeeper for safety after a legal vacuum was exposed during an inquiry into the city’s deadliest fire in decades, stressing the department’s existing manpower could cope with expanded oversight duties. Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung on Tuesday reiterated the pledge earlier…