Hong Kong fire inquiry says multiple departments partly to blame for deadly blaze
An independent committee investigating a fatal fire at Wang Fu Court found multiple government departments bore partial responsibility, citing a widespread lack of crisis awareness, regulatory loopholes and over-reliance on an honour system in the building maintenance sector.
An independent committee investigating the Wang Fu Court fire has concluded that multiple government departments bear partial responsibility for the large number of casualties caused by the blaze.
In its report, the committee identified a systemic failure stemming from several factors. The primary cause was a widespread lack of crisis awareness among responsible departments, which failed to anticipate that a catastrophic fire involving building facades could occur in Hong Kong, despite previous similar incidents that led to fires and mass casualties elsewhere.
Second, the report pointed to regulatory loopholes. For example, although smoking poses a clear fire risk, there was no specific law banning it on construction sites. Under the building works supervision system, maintenance works were classified as minor projects, attracting minimal or no oversight. There were also few statutory controls or standards for the fire-retardant properties of temporary building materials commonly used in maintenance works, such as foam boards and kickers. Even where standards existed, as with scaffolding netting, there was no effective system to ensure compliance.
Third, the responsible departments failed to prioritise the high and obvious fire risks associated with building maintenance works, a failure that the committee said partly reflected the same lack of crisis awareness. Supervisory personnel should have learned from previous similar fire incidents but did not appreciate the severity of the risks at the time.
Fourth, the report noted that the government relied heavily on an honour system, trusting professionals such as architects, registered contractors, registered fire service contractors and property management companies to properly fulfil their duties. However, there were clear signs that individuals with suspected triad backgrounds were heavily involved in the building maintenance sector, yet the government exercised virtually no control or supervision over such works.
Fifth, the committee said the incident reflected a rule-bound working attitude within the government that failed to adequately consider public welfare. The way multiple departments handled complaints during the tragedy reinforced the public's existing perception of this attitude in the public sector.