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Introduction

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What we know so far:

• 146 people, including a firefighter, confirmed dead
• 79 injured, including 12 firefighters
• Around 40 people deemed to be missing; about 100 cases categorised as “unresolvable”
• The eight residential blocks in the estate had been undergoing renovations since July 2024, covered in bamboo scaffolding and green mesh
• Authorities say highly flammable styrofoam material used in renovation works caused fire to spread rapidly
• Government has launched criminal investigations to find cause of blaze
• Three-day citywide mourning, national and Hong Kong flags at half-mast
• Seven Indonesian helpers confirmed dead, another 79 missing
• Beijing has praised Hong Kong’s rescue and relief efforts and pledged support

Tears of sorrow flow as Hong Kong continues to mourn the victims of the city’s deadliest blaze in decades on Sunday, with workers and residents queuing at the scene, as well as in Central and at halls to pay their respects, writing tributes, offering prayers and laying flowers.

The death toll has now risen to 146, with members of a police unit finding 18 bodies on Sunday, five days after the inferno at the Wang Fuk Court estate in Tai Po broke out. The previous figure of 128 dead had remained unchanged on Saturday.

National and Hong Kong flags at all government buildings and facilities, including offices abroad, will fly at half-mast until Monday as the city observes three days of mourning.

Recovery work continues on the site. The blaze was first reported at 2.51pm on Wednesday and quickly escalated to the highest level, a No 5 alarm fire. Huge plumes of dark smoke billowed high into the sky as the flames rapidly spread to seven of the eight blocks in the estate.

Hotlines for help:

Casualty inquiry hotline of police: 1878 999

Health Bureau’s Mental Health Support Hotline: 18111

Tai Po District Office help desk at Alice Ho Miu Ling Nethersole Hospital for assistance and public inquiries: 2658 4040.

More from our coverage:

–Want to donate in cash or kind? How to help Hong Kong’s embattled fire victims

–‘She kept crying for me to rescue her’: victims’ families mourn fallen in Hong Kong

–What are the right lessons from Hong Kong’s worst fire in 7 decades?