Hong Kong: Rescue teams in Hong Kong have officially suspended search operations at the gutted 18-storey residential building in Jordan after structural engineers declared the charred remains too unstable for further entry.
The devastating fire, which erupted on Wednesday morning, has claimed 13 lives, including seven men and six women, with another 40 injured.
Firefighters battled the inferno for over 36 hours at the 60-year-old block on Canton Road, but persistent smoke and the threat of collapse forced authorities to call off the hunt for any remaining trapped residents on Friday evening. “The building is at extreme risk of total collapse,” a Fire Services Department spokesperson told reporters, adding that sniffer dogs and drones had already scoured every accessible corner.
Chief Executive John Lee visited the site earlier today and announced an immediate relief package: affected families will receive emergency cash grants of HK$20,000 each, temporary hotel accommodation for 70 displaced households, and priority public housing allocation. A special task force has also been formed to probe the blaze, suspected to have started from an electrical fault in a partitioned flat.
The tragedy has spotlighted Hong Kong’s ageing subdivided flats, where thousands live in cramped, fire-prone cubicles. “This is a wake-up call for the entire city,” said lawmaker Tik Chi-yuen, demanding faster upgrades of old buildings.
As the smell of smoke lingers over Jordan’s narrow streets and mourning relatives light incense outside the cordoned-off site, the city pauses to count the cost of a fire that turned home into graveyard in minutes.