For many of the people in the towering Wang Fuk Court, scene of one of Hong Kong’s deadliest fires on Nov. 26, the high-rise complex is the only home they have ever known.

Located in the city’s northern Tai Po District, far from downtown, the community is part of the Home Ownership Scheme, a government-run program that provides subsidized public housing to low- and middle-income residents.

With 1,984 apartments across eight buildings, each covering 48 to 54 square meters, homes here initially sold for HK$116,000 to HK$159,100 ($14,906 to $20,445) when construction was completed in 1983.

Tam, a resident in his 20s who asked to be identified by only his surname, has lived with his family in Block C — Wang Sun House — since he was born. His window overlooks Tai Po Baptist Public School and offers a slight view of the sea in the distance.

He says that on weekdays, before the fire, the only people you were likely to see around the community were seniors and children, often accompanied by a foreign domestic helper.

According to the city’s 2021 census, more than 36% of Wang Fuk Court’s 4,685 residents were aged 65 and over. As such, the community offered a variety of activities tailored for this demographic, including banquets and group classes on arts and crafts, Cantonese opera, dancing, singing, and traditional Chinese meditation.

Yet, just like their residents, the apartment blocks at Wang Fuk Court were also aging, requiring ongoing minor renovations and annual upgrades.

In 2016, under the government’s Mandatory Building Inspection Scheme, which applies to all structures over 30 years old, the property managers were ordered to inspect and repair “common parts, external walls, and projections or signboards” to ensure safety. A major, large-scale renovation project was on the horizon — one that would ultimately result in tragedy.

Planning permission

Like many other communities in Hong Kong, the buildings at Wang Fuk Court are managed by an owners’ corporation, with members elected by fellow residents. After receiving the official order, the group commissioned Will Power Architects to carry out comprehensive inspections of each structure.

In November 2019, the firm submitted its report for independent review by the Office of the Permanent Secretary for Housing, highlighting a series of safety hazards that required attention. However, the pandemic came soon after, halting any progress on the project.

Tam says he only started taking notice of the maintenance plan in 2023, when he was at university. He began helping other residents review information on the repairs, as it was around this time that the reality set in that they would soon need to choose a contractor, decide on a plan, and arrange payment.

In principle, all unit owners at Wang Fuk Court need to vote on maintenance plans. Tam’s father backed a relatively cheap option, involving simpler repairs, but he was in the minority — the winning proposal was more complex and extensive. Tam believes this may be related to the large elderly population, as many lifelong residents hoped to refurbish their homes and enjoy their remaining years in comfort.

Prestige Construction and Engineering eventually won the contract to carry out the repairs in April 2024. However, residents were shocked when the company quoted a total cost of more than HK$330 million — approximately HK$157,000 to HK$183,000 per household — to be paid in six installments within eight months.

With questions lingering over the expense and lack of transparency in the bidding process, some residents decided to take action. Younger people joined social media groups to gather information on the project and explain the situation to elderly relatives. Others sought media exposure, while some distributed leaflets in nearby parks to collect signatures against the owners’ corporation.

In September 2024, more than 1,000 owners attended a special meeting in which the entire owners’ corporation was dismissed and new members were elected.

This ultimately had little impact on the maintenance project — the contract had already been signed — but the fundraising period was extended to 18 months, with backing eventually secured from the Urban Renewal Authority, allowing residents to apply for subsidies of up to HK$80,000. Yet, for retirees on limited pensions, the fees remained a heavy burden, forcing some to borrow from their children.

In July and August last year, the Wang Fuk Court owners’ corporation organized eight project briefings. These were attended by representatives from Prestige and Will Power, and many elderly residents. The 59 questions that came from these sessions clearly show the owners’ concerns — ranging from air conditioning and exterior scaffolding to insurance, construction, and fundraising.

One owner asked whether the scaffolding mesh was fire-resistant. The response was: “The mesh used in this project must be fire-retardant, but it is not completely fireproof.” Another inquired what fire safety items required repair and was told: “Repairing fire doors, replacing fire-rated windows on staircases, and replacing covers for fire suppression tanks. There are no indications the estate will receive a fire safety improvement order in the near future.”

When the project finally got underway, enthusiastic residents monitored the progress, sharing photos and videos in an online group. This included footage of workers smoking on site, despite notices by the elevators warning that it was illegal. Tam heard that residents reported the issue to the owners’ corporation but received no response.

As of Nov. 10 this year, briefing materials from the corporation showed that more than HK$179 million had already been spent on engineering, with the focus then on repairing interior and exterior walls.

Endless night

The renovation project officially kicked off on July 16, 2024, with the exterior walls of all eight buildings at Wang Fuk Court soon covered with bamboo scaffolding and green protective mesh.

Windows that offered views of the sea were sealed one by one with panels of white styrofoam, commonly used in construction for insulation but highly flammable.

Qiqi, a student at The Education University of Hong Kong who did not want to be fully identified, visited Wang Fuk Court one afternoon in early fall while looking for rental accommodation in Tai Po. The windows in the unit she viewed were entirely covered by foam panels. “It didn’t feel like daytime at all,” she recalls. The rent was only HK$10,000 a month, about HK$5,000 less than similar properties in the area.

Tam would tell friends that he hadn’t felt sunlight in his home for a year. Like most, he rarely opened his windows — the air outside was filled with dust from the renovation work — and only a faint light crept around the edges of the protective window panels. Plunged into permanent darkness, residents had no choice but to keep electric lights on all day.

“My eyes are still young, but for seniors, it’s much harder to see anything in such dim conditions. After we started living in the dark, my grandfather spent most of his time sleeping,” Tam says.

In an online group for residents, one member raised concerns over the contractor’s choice of materials. “Many other estates undergoing renovations don’t use foam panels to seal their windows — they use transparent materials. Just think about the elderly residents living alone with limited mobility — how will they cope living in darkness 24 hours a day?” Another owner shared a video of some foam panels on fire, showing how flammable they are.

In response, the owners’ corporation issued a notice in October 2024 explaining that the contractor had covered the windows to protect them against flying debris caused by the renovation work.

That same month, it also posted in the online group: “In light of the varying degrees of psychological distress experienced by owners after their windows were covered, the management committee has invited experts from the Mental Health Association of Hong Kong to provide psychological support for our residents. … The management committee is committed to doing its utmost to protect elderly residents, especially those who are confined to their homes for extended periods.”

Some seniors living alone found the conditions so intolerable that they chose to leave, staying temporarily with relatives. Renters also began terminating their leases.

A landlord who gave her name as Vivi says her tenants moved out after complaining about the “extremely bad” living conditions caused by the construction noise and excessive dust. Even with all seven windows sealed, the dust would still drift in through the air conditioning ducts.

For most long-term residents, leaving wasn’t an option. One upbeat owner started sharing “home improvement hacks” in the online group, describing how she had covered her sealed windows with scenic prints, including a seascape in the kitchen and a cherry blossom tree in the bedroom. “Better than nothing,” she said.

She also recommended disposable, dust-proof plastic sheets to cover furniture, as well as mosquito nets priced around HK$30 to help filter out the dust. On clear, breezy days when construction workers weren’t drilling nearby, she advised neighbors to vacuum their window sills, lay damp paper towels to reduce airborne dust, and “enjoy the view for a bit.”

Many residents had their air conditioning units removed to protect them against the dust. To keep cool, residents instead purchased portable units to place in their homes or common areas.

Although some owners at Wang Fuk Court questioned the need for repairs, the Hong Kong Institute of Surveyors has warned that aging buildings are an increasingly serious liability. As of May 2022, the city had more than 27,000 private buildings of various types aged 30 or older, with issues such as ceiling leaks, concrete spalling, rusty pipes, and exposed steel bars now commonplace.

“I believe that the reason we endured not being able to see outside was that we were all looking forward to seeing what this place would look like once the work was completed,” Tam says, adding that the renovation project was expected to be wrapped up in the first half of 2026.

Arrested development

Vivi’s parents were among the first to purchase a unit at Wang Fuk Court, moving into their 50-square-meter home in Block G — Wang Shing House — in 1984.

The 40-something recalls that as a child, she often went to the playground outside, where children would run around while their mothers stood around fanning themselves and chatting. Back then, there were strong neighborly bonds, and it was common to drop by each other’s homes with food or gifts. “Now, all those beautiful memories have gone up in smoke,” she laments.

One resident who has lived there for 41 years described last year’s Mid-Autumn Festival celebrations in September as the happiest, most harmonious, and most neighborly evening he’d ever spent. A gathering to view the full moon featured traditional lantern riddle games, as well as Taekwondo demonstrations by local children. It was “completely the feeling of home,” he says.

Upcoming events were also in the works. An annual ritual to “thank the deities” was planned for Dec. 4, with a procession to nearby Tai Wong Yeh Temple, while several spaces at Wang Fuk Court were also set to be used as a location for a TV drama, with filming scheduled to continue until January.

The blaze that ripped through the community on Nov. 26 brought an end to all that. As of Dec. 4, the disaster had claimed 159 lives.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the fire originated in the low-level exterior scaffolding at Block F — Wang Cheong House — and ignited the mesh before spreading rapidly. The bamboo scaffolding and foam panels were set ablaze by the intense heat, causing the windows to shatter and introducing fire into the building.

From the 20 samples of mesh netting collected at the site, seven failed to meet flame-retardant testing standards. According to Hong Kong’s Independent Commission Against Corruption, the original scaffold mesh was damaged during a typhoon this July and was replaced with non-fire-retardant material. In addition, fire alarm systems in all eight buildings failed to function properly.

Investigations by authorities into the tragedy are ongoing. So far, police have arrested 21 people in connection with the incident, including employees of Will Power and Prestige.

Reported by Wei Xiaohan, Li Xiaofang, Xie Ziyi, and Wang Xiyuan.

A version of this article originally appeared in White Night Workshop. It has been translated and edited for brevity and clarity, and is republished here with permission.

Translator: Carrie Davies; editors: Wang Juyi and Hao Qibao.

(Header image: A couple gazes at Wang Fuk Court, where a major fire engulfed several residential buildings, Hong Kong, Nov. 29, 2025 Vernon Yuen/Nexpher Images Hong Kong via VCG)