2 rushed to hospital, 77 evacuated in Hong Kong village as fire rips through squatter huts
- Authorities deploy 150 emergency personnel and six ambulances to No 3 alarm blaze at Wang Lung Tsuen in Tsuen Wan
- Intense flames and remote water source heightened difficulties for rescuers
Two people were rushed to hospital and 77 other residents evacuated after a fire that lasted nearly three hours broke out in squatter huts in a Hong Kong village on Friday morning.
Authorities were alerted at 4.11am and deployed 150 firefighters and ambulance personnel to Wang Lung Tsuen in Tsuen Wan, with the blaze upgraded to a No 3 alarm at 4.39am.
Hong Kong uses a five-tier system to rate the severity of fires, with five as the most serious.
The department also dispatched 29 fire engines and six ambulances. Firefighters used six jets and mobilised six breathing apparatus teams to fight the flames, which were largely put out by 6.56am.
An 80-year-old man and a boy, 15, felt unwell after inhaling thick smoke and were sent to Yan Chai Hospital in Tsuen Wan for treatment, while 77 other people were evacuated to safety. The teen was later transferred to Princess Margaret Hospital in Kwai Chung.
Woman, 70, dies after fire engulfs Hong Kong public housing flat
According to the department, the fire broke out in three squatter huts spanning an area of 9,688 sq ft – about 3½ tennis courts. About sixteen residents living in the homes were relocated.
An occupant of one of the huts said they were almost trapped by the fire.
“[I was] awoken by noises, I thought there were thieves, but then I saw some smoke. I woke up my son. When the door was opened, there was lots of smoke, so we put on our jackets and fled,” the occupant told the media.
“The fire was so big that the staircase could not be used. I fled via the hillside.”
A family member of the injured residents said: “My dad has hearing problems, he could not hear me asking him to leave and even wanted to put out the fire.
“I was woken up by my two dogs, and saw the area opposite my home engulfed in flames. Then people evacuated and drove away the vehicles, otherwise the loss could have been even bigger. Eight cars were burnt.”
The intense fire and remote water source increased difficulties for firefighters and rescue work, authorities said.
Body found in Hong Kong flat after firefighters put out blaze
“The main difficulties in the rescue were that the fire was severe, the water source was remote, the fire was big and the area involved was very large,” said Yue Tsz-kit, divisional officer of the Fire Services Department.
No dangerous goods were found at the scene, and the cause of the blaze is still under investigation.
A Home Affairs Department spokesman said it had opened a temporary shelter at Lei Muk Shue Community Hall for residents. He added that the Tsuen Wan District Office would monitor the situation and liaise with other government departments to help.
The blaze came days after another No 3 alarm fire broke out at the upmarket Regal Crest on Robinson Road in Mid-Levels on Sunday. At least six people, including a firefighter, were injured.
Firefighters did not rule out that the cause of the fire, which took nearly four hours to extinguish, was related to the operation of a karaoke machine in the 23rd-floor flat.
Hours later on the same day, a 70-year-old woman died after a fire in a flat at Tak Loong House, Tak Long Estate in Kai Tak. Police said preliminary investigations suggested the blaze started after a burning joss stick set fire to nearby items.
