Wang Fuk Court fire result of ‘systemic failure’ in policy, experts tell hearing

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An inquiry into Hong Kong's Wang Fuk Court fire found it resulted from systemic public policy failures. Experts highlighted inadequate strategies for combating fires on high-rise building facades and the use of combustible materials in temporary structures as key factors.

Hong Kong’s deadliest inferno in decades was a result of a “systemic failure” in public policy, two fire engineering experts have said, citing the lack of strategies to fight flames on the facades of high-rise buildings and the prolonged use of combustible materials in “temporary” works. An independent committee inquiry heard on Thursday that last year’s Wang Fuk Court fire was unprecedented in magnitude, with flames moving upwards along the buildings’ facades at more than 10 metres (32.8 feet)...