Getting messages from overseas hoping I’m not affected by the tragedy in Tai Po. The fire at Wang Fuk Court is a big story worldwide not just because of the statistics (latest: 44 dead and a horrifying 279 unaccounted for), but because of the visuals. The beauty of Hong Kong’s juxtaposition of high-rises, mountains and sea suddenly turns surreal and nightmarish.
Nearby residents have been asked to stop delivering supplies to the area as volunteers can’t cope. McDonalds is donating thousands of meals.
Presumably we will hear how much bamboo scaffolding, plastic netting, and the close proximity of the apartment blocks contributed to the tragedy. Will we hear whether officials tasked with enforcement might have been negligent? Whether some of the NatSec budget could have been better spent on policing worksite safety? (This would be a good time to wrap up the endless subversive pancakes frenzies.) Or will the narrative speedily move on to rah-rah about heroic emergency services and support from the north?
Natsec frenzy!
Thankfully McDonald’s is not Japanese-owned.
I suspect there would be few in Hong Kong who would be bothered if the people charged with wrongdoing were extradited to the Mainland and put on trial there. Importantly, it would send a powerful message to others in the city who might be involved in similar practices.
And the fire department inspectors get off scot free…
Indeed, if only a fraction of the resources devoted to 24/7 surveillance and hassling of small book shops and tracking down banner fellers were devoted to tackling corruption and malpractices that are the real threat to the security of any society.
Surely for these large renos a sample of the materials should be taken for testing to ensure that they are fire proofed?
I noted that despite the urgency of the situation our officials managed to attend the ‘war room’ meeting attired in matching in vests lith logo over white shirts.
An indication of where the priorities lie?
Sadly, it’ll be “b”
I recall James Ockenden’s persistence covering illegal concrete plants in Yau Tong (I think?) and long-overlooked FSD warnings following a blaze in Jordan/Yau Ma Tei.
With the crushing of independent journalism, we lose the ability to hold a light up to these sorts of issues, and to hold those in positions of authority to account when ineffective governance fails to serve the public.
Another nail in the coffin.
Another very sad day for Hong Kong.
You do have to wonder how exactly they’ll be spinning the heroic side of the help from up North getting their firetruck stuck under a bridge and having to be rescued themselves.
This is definitely going to be a trial by… well… fire for the new only-patriots-to-blame model. The housing was government built and managed by the HA, and clearly it was unsafely spaced, and didn’t have enough firetruck access. And according to the gossip, the renovation works were pushed through by the HA as a fait accompli without the residents’ approval.
Worse still for the only-patriots-to-blame administration, the current total of 44 dead and a guesstimate of about 200 dead would put it streets ahead of the previous highest death toll of 41 in the Garley Building fire back in colonial 1996.
The traditional government goto states of inaction, distraction and deflection won’t cut it here, and the upcoming “choose what colour your area’s automatic rubber stamp tick on all government policy is” will serve as a topical reminder of how this level of screw up is set to be the norm rather than the exception.
Sadly, shades of the UK’s Grenfell Tower disaster; in both exterior cladding with poor fire retardance and windows sealed with highly flammable material. My guess is that there are a lot of other building contractors shitting their pants this morning.
When the District Councils were gutted, the replacement (re-placemen-t) offering was ‘District Fire Safety Committees’.
What do they do, exactly?
It’s not like we didn’t have a warning. Was it last month that the Chinachem Building went up in near-identical circumstances, fortunately on a Saturday when no one was around. So what did our leaders do after that? Put up more election posters, deploy every cop in town to stand around ‘national games’ sites to monitor the non-existent crowds?
Tai Po District Fire Safety Committee:
Chairman: Mr CHOI Kam-kong, MH
Vice-chairperson: Mr HO Chi-chiu, MH
Members:
Mr CHAN Kwok-ying, Paul
Mr CHAN Sai-hung
Mr CHAN Yung-wa
Mr CHENG Lun-kwong, Gilvig
Mr CHEUNG Wang-kei, Wayne
Mr CHOI Alfred
Mr FONG Jonathan
Ms KWOK Ling-wan
Mr LAI Kam-to
Ms LAU Kuen, MH
Mr LEE Hon-cheung
Ms LEE Sai-yin, Jeanne, BBS, JP
Ms LEE Yin-ho
Ms MOU Tong, Shirley
Mr MUI Ching-hung, MH
Mrs OKUSAKO CHAN Pui-shan
Mr PANG Hok-ming
Mr SU Wei-sheng
Mr TSUI Yun-yung, Terry
Mr TUNG Pit-ching
Ms WONG Yan-yan, Jannie
Ms WU Rui-long
Dr YEUNG Rigil Kent
Ms YIP Choi-ling
@Reactor # 4
“I suspect there would be few in Hong Kong who would be bothered if the people charged with wrongdoing were extradited to the Mainland and put on trial there. Importantly, it would send a powerful message to others in the city who might be involved in similar practices.”
It’s a manslaughter case you senseless retard! This can be handled just fine by HK courts you dumb cunt.
If you are so eager to surrender the last remnant HK jurisdiction then just fuck off to Shenzhen and leave the rest of us alone. We already see the fine work that the “patriots only” governance model is doing.
@Rectum – Are you referring to the “pancake” stall or the suspects facing negligence charges over the fire? Either way, it’s your usual utter b*ll%x
Several years ago, I worked in an older office building in Hong Kong that was renovated using bamboo and netting. Polystyrene sheets were glued to the outside of all the windows.
If you’ve ever seen polystyrene burn, it’s easy to imagine how easily this fire spread.
This is a terrible and entirely avoidable tragedy.
The upcoming so-called “election” will surely take a hit in (lack of) turnout as protest. Good thing so much money was used to advertise it.
it will be an interesting test for the mainlandization process to see whether the directly responsible officials get the chop as would be the case up north.
Horror indeed, but one heartwarming consequence – the massive number of Hong Kong individuals and organisations donating goods, money, and their own time and effort to help the fire victims. I’ve been falling out of love with Hong Kong, for reasons every reader here will understand, but this is a welcome reminder that the “Lion Rock spirit” is not yet extinct.
@justsayin: they have already identified the “Three Villains”. That means there will be no accusations left for any civil servants (“phew, what a relief”). Just like “up north”. nobody will be held responsible, certainly not at minister level. (remember the Government accountability system, going back to the bird flu thingie in 2003?)
@justsayin
Don’t hold your breath
https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3334408/hong-kong-contractor-fire-hit-tai-po-project-has-record-safety-offences?module=breaking&pgtype=homepage
‘Nuff said?
Re: Eggs’n’ham – a video circulating shows the District Care Team posing for fotos in their logoed jackets while next door volunteers were doing the heavy lifting.
ICAC is opening an investigation into corruption related to the reno contract. After the horse has bolted. Why did it not investigate when the residents complaints were reported? Too busy arresting folk for reposting election related posts……..
In defence of constructions workers, my building has been under reno for a year and I have never seen the workers smoke on the job. We do have an issue with smokers, but that is internal. Secu sit in front of a screen showing all the black spots and doing SFA about what are clearly serial offenders. Complaining to management is futile.