Hong Kong fire donations reach $115 million to aid victims of Tai Po blaze.
Death toll rises to 146, with 100 still missing and thousands displaced.
Authorities arrest critics and suppress dissent over government accountability.
Donations for victims of a devastating Hong Kong fire that killed at least 146 people and left thousands homeless have reached 900 million Hong Kong dollars ($115 million), authorities said on Monday (December 1, 2025), in a significant show of public support. At the same time, the government has moved quickly to limit criticism over the blaze, as questions mount over accountability.
A steady flow of people placed flowers, cards and other tributes at a makeshift memorial near the charred apartment complex, following long lines of mourners over the weekend.
“When something happens, we come out to help each other,” said Loretta Loh, after paying her respects at the site. “I have a heavy heart.”
The fire broke out on Wednesday afternoon at the Wang Fuk Court complex in the Tai Po suburb. It consumed seven of the eight apartment towers, home to roughly 4,600 residents, and was not fully extinguished until Friday morning.
Hong Kong police Disaster Victim Identification Unit staff searched four of the buildings over the weekend, finding 30 more bodies, bringing the official death toll to 146. Another 100 people remain unaccounted for, and 79 were injured, authorities said.
On Monday, Hong Kong officials stated that teams were assessing the safety of remaining buildings, including the one initially affected, which sustained the most damage.
The donated funds, alongside 300 million Hong Kong dollars ($38.5 million) in government start-up support, will go toward helping victims rebuild homes and provide long-term aid, local officials said. Survivors have also received cash subsidies for expenses such as funerals, and authorities are working to secure housing.
According to AP, 683 residents have been accommodated in local hotels and hostels, while another 1,144 have moved into transitional housing units. Two emergency shelters remain operational.
The complex’s buildings had bamboo scaffolding draped with nylon netting for external renovations, with windows covered in polystyrene panels. Authorities are investigating whether fire safety codes were breached. The Labour Department confirmed that residents had complained about the netting for nearly a year and that officials had conducted 16 inspections of the project since July 2024, warning contractors multiple times in writing about meeting fire safety requirements. The latest inspection occurred just a week before the fire.
Hong Kong’s anti-corruption agency has arrested 11 people, including directors and an engineering consultant of a construction company. Public scrutiny has also turned toward whether government officials should be held responsible.
“People are angry and think that the HK government should be accountable,” said Jean-Pierre Cabestan, a political scientist based locally and senior research fellow at Paris’s Asia Centre think tank.
However, space for dissent in the city is tightly restricted. Since returning to Chinese control in 1997, Hong Kong has increasingly moved to limit public criticism, often citing national security concerns.
On Saturday, the Office for Safeguarding National Security issued a sharply worded statement condemning what it described as “evil schemes” seeking “to create trouble and disrupt Hong Kong,” without offering further specifics.
Associated Press reported that a man who helped organise an online petition calling for government accountability was arrested on suspicion of sedition on Saturday. Two more people were detained on Sunday, including a volunteer who provided aid in Tai Po after the fire.
Mr Cabestan said Hong Kong authorities were acting similarly to those in mainland China, pre-empting protests before they could emerge.
Hong Kong police declined to comment on specific arrests, stating only that “police will take actions according to actual circumstances and in accordance with the law,” AP reported.
Authorities have effectively suppressed dissent in Hong Kong since hundreds of thousands protested in 2019 against proposed extradition to mainland China, with mass protests largely banned and opposition figures barred from legislative elections, AP added.
(With inputs from AP)
