Government eyes metal scaffolds, but expert points to flammable netting

Debate over accountability intensified as the government signaled a shift toward banning bamboo scaffolding in the wake of the deadly five-alarm blaze at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, while a former Observatory chief questioned whether officials were targeting the wrong culprit.

The government announced late Thursday that future construction sites will be required to phase out traditional bamboo scaffolding and switch entirely to metal structures, citing safety concerns after the fire left multiple residents dead and injured.

But former Hong Kong Observatory director Lam Chiu-ying sharply challenged the move, arguing that bamboo was not the material responsible for the rapid spread of the blaze.

In a social media post, Lam questioned why “the protective netting designed to safeguard scaffolders became a murderous force that destroyed people’s homes,” adding that “flammable protective netting and foam materials were the obvious culprits, so why is bamboo — which is not easy to ignite — being blamed instead?”

Lam said systemic issues took root as far back as 2009, when the Operation Building Bright renovation scheme was launched to support the construction sector. Since then, he wrote, “countless Hongkongers have suffered under the so-called big business deal,” paying high fees and living for years “in inhumane full-building enclosures,” with little oversight and growing risks.

He raised a series of pointed questions: “If job protection is important, what about the public’s right to a dignified life?” and “Renovation is supposed to improve living conditions — why has it become a death trap?”

He further asked why, whenever tragedy strikes, “only materials are blamed, but not the people or the system behind them.”

Lam said he welcomed the police arrests of personnel from the construction company involved in the renovation works at Wang Fuk Court, but pressed further: “What actions are the other departments taking?”

The government has not yet responded to Lam’s remarks, as investigations into the cause of the blaze continue.