The death toll in the devastating blaze at Tai Po's Wang Fuk Court has risen to 160 as DNA tests showed two bodies previously counted as only one.

Officers also found suspected human bones during their search on the ground after piles of scaffolding were removed.

"We will conduct tests to see whether the bones belong to humans or animals, or if they are body parts belonging to the deceased that we have identified earlier," police commissioner Joe Chow said on Tuesday.

“As for one of the previous bodies we discovered, forensic pathologists extracted DNA samples from different parts of the body, and confirmed that the DNA belonged to two people – an elderly woman and her domestic helper."

Six people remain unaccounted for about two weeks after the fire, according to the force.

Of the 31 people previously listed as unaccounted for, nine were killed in the blaze, four were found to have died before the fire on November 26, and 12 were safe.

The identities of 120 dead were confirmed, Chow said, with the remaining 40 awaiting DNA verification.

He also said authorities have collected DNA samples from 162 family members of the deceased, with the government laboratory and forensic pathologists prioritising testing to get results in a week.

And of the 79 people who were injured and received hospital treatment, 24 are in stable condition and 55 have been discharged.
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Last updated: 2025-12-09 HKT 21:23