Three arrested in Hong Kong fire that killed at least 44: What we know about the Hong Kong apartment fires | World News

Firefighters work to extinguish a fire which broke out at Wang Fuk Court, a residential estate in the Tai Po drict of Hong Kong’s New Territories. (AP Photo)

A huge fire that ripped through several high-rise residential apartment complexes in Hong Kong has killed at least 44 people and 45 others remain in critical condition. More than 270 people remain missing and thousands of residents are in evacuation shelters. Hong Kong police have arrested three men on suspicion of manslaughter in relation to the apartment complex fire in Tai Po, CNN reported.

The firefighters, who worked through the night in order to bring the blaze under control, struggled to reach the upper floors of the Wang Fuk Court housing complex due to thick smoke and intense heat from the fire which erupted in the residential tower blocks in Hong Kong on Wednesday, Reuters reported. The complex in northern Tai Po drict has eight blocks which cons of around 2,000 apartments.

Smoke rises after a fire broke out at Wang Fuk Court, a residential estate in the Tai Po drict of Hong Kong’s New Territories. (AP Photo)

Here’s what to know about the apartment fires:

When and where did the fire start:

The blaze broke out in Hong Kong’s Tai Po drict around 2:51pm (local time) on Wednesday at Wang Fuk Court, which is a large housing complex in the city. The court has eight towers with 31 storeys present in each of them.

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

According to Tai Po drict councillor Mui Siu-fung, seven towers have been affected due to the raging fire, BBC reported. As per the 2021 government census report, about 4,600 residents reside in nearly 1,984 apartments. Videos showed flames still coming out of the apartments.

How serious is the fire?

The blaze in Hong Kong’s apartment complexes has been identified as a level five alarm which is the highest in severity. As soon as the fire broke out, the Hong Kong adminration declared it as a level four fire but after around four hours, the level was raised to five.

Over 750 firefighters, 128 fire engines, 57 ambulances and around 400 police officers have been deployed at the scene but Derek Armstrong Chan, deputy director of fire services said due to the severity of the heat, firefighters are finding it difficult to enter the building for rescue operations.

Emergency hotline and shelters

The fire services department on Thursday morning said that fire in at least four of the buildings was “coming under control” as the adminration set up emergency shelters to accommodate residents who were being evacuated from the residential complexes under fire.

One of the evacuation shelters, Tung Cheong Street Sports Centre, was full and residents were being directed to other shelters, reported SCMP. A hotline has been set up for the to inquire regarding casualties the Hong Kong police and the number is +8521878 999.

(with inputs from agencies)