The main contractor and project consultant for Wang Fuk Court’s renovation project, and a registered inspector must bear the most significant accountability for a disastrous fire that took 168 lives nearly a year ago, an independent inquiry into the tragedy has concluded.

In a 16-chapter report spanning nearly 1,200 pages submitted to the government, the committee stated that Prestige Construction & Engineering and consultancy firm Will Power Architects were fully aware of the fire risks but ignored repeated complaints and safety concerns raised by residents of the Tai Po housing estate during maintenance works.

“They put the lives of all residents in Wang Fuk Court at serious risk, apparently with a view to maximising their financial gains,” the report read.

The committee slammed the two firms' conduct as going far beyond oversight or negligence, noting that they used substandard building materials and unsafe working procedures, such as non-fire-retardant scaffolding nets and flammable foam boards covering building windows.

The report also stated that Will Power and Prestige Construction should be held responsible for fire service installations that did not function properly on the day of the fire.

The committee found that Prestige Construction and its management, including Hau Wa-kin and Gordon Ho; as well as Will Power and its management Jason Wong; alongside Wilson Ng, a registered inspector employed by Will Power to oversee the renovation project, "deserve the most severe criticisms".

The committee also named other firms as culpable for the disaster to varying degrees.

These include Gain Profit Shed Industry, which was aware of and took part in a plot to temporarily replace non-fire-retardant scaffolding nets with fire-retardant ones just for site inspections by authorities.

The property management company for Wang Fuk Court at the time of the fire, ISS EastPoint Properties, was also slammed for allowing its staff to switch off the power supply to the fire alarm systems despite lacking the professional qualifications to do so.

Meanwhile, Victory Fire Engineering, the registered fire services contractor responsible for annual inspections and related works, was criticised for being passive in dealing with fire safety issues.

And the committee described China Status Development and Engineering Company as a "dummy" fire services contractor, saying the firm filed documents simply to feign compliance and satisfy regulators.



Edited by Aaron Tam