Bodies carried out overnight as Tai Po fire tragedy deepens

Emergency crews continued their search and recovery operation early Friday after a five-alarm blaze tore through Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, with multiple bodies carried out from the scene overnight.

In the early hours, Food and Environmental Hygiene Department staff deployed a large transport vehicle as mortuary workers removed several bodies wrapped in black plastic bags. Among them were two smaller bodies, indicating the possibility of child victims.

At around 5am, flames reignited inside a flat at Wang Tao House, sending smoke pouring from the window as firefighters rushed to contain the renewed outbreak.

The deadly fire has left many residents dead, injured, or unaccounted for. Throughout the night, some survivors stayed at the platform of the nearby Kwong Fuk Commercial Centre, turning the area into an improvised waiting zone.

Volunteers arrived with supplies, and the space quickly transformed into a temporary donation hub stacked with food, water, blankets, and daily necessities.

Meanwhile, at the temporary shelter set up inside CCC Fung Leung Kit Memorial Secondary School, a notice was posted at the entrance stating that donations were temporarily suspended as the inflow of supplies exceeded capacity.

Amid the chaos, some Hong Kong residents stepped forward to help friends who were unable to return to the city.

One of them, a man surnamed Yu, came to the fire scene to check on animals in need—but also carried an additional plea. He said a friend who had emigrated to Canada asked him to search for his parents, who lived in the estate and had been unreachable since the blaze.

Yu said he stayed near the donation point into the early morning hours, hoping to find any information.

“He asked me to look for his parents because he can’t come back right now,” Yu said, adding that he had little to go on. With no detailed information about the couple’s exact whereabouts, no progress had been made.

As of Friday morning, the death toll has reached 94, according to official announcements.