Watch: Viral videos show shocking fire outbreak at Hong Kong high-rise residential buildings | World News
The blaze started mid-afternoon, and authorities upgraded it to a level 5 alarm, the highest level of severity, after nightfall, the Fire Services Department said.
At least 13 people have been killed in a devastating fire that engulfed seven high-rise apartment buildings in Hong Kong on Wednesday. At least 15 others were injured, and about 700 people have been evacuated to temporary shelters. Many more are feared to be trapped inside the high-rise buildings in the Tai Po drict, in the New Territories.
Videos go viral
Videos and images posted on social media showed the extent of the devastation caused the inferno.
🚨🇭🇰 HONG KONG HIGH-RISE INFERNO: FOUR DEAD, FIREFIGHTERS STILL BATTLING THE BLAZEA towering firestorm ripped through a housing estate in Hong Kong today – a blaze so aggressive it jumped between multiple high-rise towers, choked the skyline with black smoke, and killed at… https://t.co/0dO17NghK6 pic.twitter.com/5AS33vFiF1— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) November 26, 2025
The raging fire sent up a column of flames and thick smoke as it spread quickly on bamboo scaffolding and construction netting that had been set up around the exterior of the housing complex.
The blaze started mid-afternoon, and authorities upgraded it to a level 5 alarm, the highest level of severity, after nightfall, the Fire Services Department said.
Breaking: At least 12 dead as Hong Kong’s Tai Po blaze raised to maximum threat level 🙏🙏🙏 #hongkong #taipo pic.twitter.com/7uhxZYZ57K— Brian Wong (@kaiyan188) November 26, 2025
Records show the housing complex consed of eight buildings with almost 2,000 apartments housing about 4,800 people.
Multiple buildings close to each other were ablaze, with bright flames and smoke shooting out of many of the apartments’ windows as night fell.
Stay safe kawan semoga tidak ada WNI yang menjadi korban kebakaran di Tai po Hong Kong 🙏🙏 pic.twitter.com/HEETIWZPXj— Lemon Tea (@A_LinLemontea) November 26, 2025
Authorities said that hundreds of firefighters, police officers and paramedics were deployed.
A major fire broke out this afternoon and is still burning at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, Hong Kong, China.At least 4 people have died, and several others – including firefighters – have been injured. pic.twitter.com/EgidZV07zC— Weather Monitor (@WeatherMonitors) November 26, 2025
Bamboo scaffolding is a common sight in Hong Kong at building construction and renovation projects, though the government said earlier this year that it would start phasing it out for public projects because of safety concerns. The fire is the most deadly in Hong Kong in years.
