The death toll from blazes that engulfed a multi-block residential complex in Tai Po rose to 65 on Thursday night, as firefighters went through each floor of the buildings to bring the fires under control.

The Fire Services Department said that as of 8pm, the fire at Wang Fuk Court had also injured 70 people, adding they were able to rescue a man found on the staircase of one of the buildings in the estate earlier in the evening.

Fires in four of the seven blocks affected have been extinguished, officials had said, while those in the remaining three buildings were "under control".

“The temperature is very high in the fireground and the layout inside is very complex, because scaffolding is collapsed,” said Deputy Director of Fire Services Wong Ka-wing.

“Our firefighters need to confront the high temperature to proceed to the fireground layer by layer.”

Wong said the authorities could only deploy a limited number of emergency personnel at a time as the residential units were not big.

Despite the challenges, Wong said: “We will not give up any chance to save lives.”

Officials had confirmed that 51 people were pronounced dead at the scene, while four others lost their lives after being taken to hospital.

Firefighters said they have so far attended 296 of 346 calls for assistance.
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Last updated: 2025-11-27 HKT 22:19