At least 13 dead in Hong Kong residential complex fire
Flames devoured bamboo scaffolding on at least three apartment blocks located in the Tai Po district.
At least 36 people died Wednesday in a fire at a residential complex in Hong Kong, a local official told AFP.
City leader John Lee added that 279 people were missing.
"So far, this fire has killed 36 people and left 279 people missing. There are 29 people hospitalized, seven of them in critical condition," Lee told a news conference early Thursday in China.
Real hell in Hong Kong: fire engulfs massive high-rises
Several residential blocks housing thousands of people are burning at once, trapping residents in a blazing inferno. The fire is spreading extremely fast.
At least four deaths have been reported so far, including a… pic.twitter.com/Jpp3rBaRLq
According to a local media quoted by the agency, among the dead is a firefighter.
The flames devoured the bamboo scaffolding of at least three apartment blocks in Tai Po, a northern district of Hong Kong, before spreading to other parts of the Wang Fuk Court residential complex.
Live images could show plumes of smoke over the residential buildings.
767 firefighters, 400 police officers, 128 fire engines and 57 ambulances were deployed to tackle Wednesday's deadly fire at a Tai Po residential complex, the Fire Services Department has told reporters. Latest: https://t.co/eV4MYlagBh
Photos: Kyle Lam & Kelly Ho/HKFP. pic.twitter.com/vnHD9SH78K
Authorities had to close segments of a nearby highway while firefighters continued to battle the blaze as night fell.
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