A three-alarm fire at the Wah Fung Building in Jordan last month resulted in 5 deaths and 40 injuries, sparking public concern over fire safety in old buildings. The Director of Fire Services, Mr. Yeung Yan Kin, stated that after meeting with 44 injured individuals and witnesses and analyzing the situation, they believe the fire originated from combustible materials on the first floor. The most deadly aspect of the incident was the thick smoke, as smoke doors on some floors were wedged open, allowing the smoke to travel up the staircase, potentially causing people to inhale it and faint or even die.
In an interview on a television program aired on the 26th, Yeung was asked about a fire inspection of the Wah Fung Building conducted by the Fire Department approximately two months before the major fire, where no fire hazards were found. He responded that the inspection at that time primarily focused on the progress of fire improvement works on the ground floor and stated that the wedging open of the smoke doors was a human error, making it difficult to determine when they were wedged open. He also mentioned receiving complaints about the smoke doors being wedged open at the Wah Fung Building and issuing fire safety improvement notices to the building.
Following the fire at the Wah Fung Building, the Fire Department has adjusted its building risk-based inspection mechanism, prioritizing inspections of old buildings and those used for commercial purposes. In the past month, they have conducted 2,000 inspections and issued about 600 fire safety improvement notices. Yeung stated that high-risk buildings are inspected at least once a year, while those with lower risks are inspected every two to three years. Depending on the results of the current inspections, they will decide whether to increase the frequency of inspections for high-risk buildings.
Authorities had previously announced plans to submit a bill to the Legislative Council in July, empowering the government to carry out improvement works for owners who fail to comply with fire safety instructions and then recover the costs. Yeung mentioned that there are over 200 buildings that have not complied with fire safety instructions for more than 10 years, and it is estimated that the entire assessment process will take three months to complete. They will consider various factors to ensure that owners do not rely solely on the Fire Department and fail to comply with the instructions.
In cases where owners are unreachable or not in Hong Kong, or if it is challenging to form an owners’ corporation, preventing them from hiring fire consultants for the works, the Fire Department will conduct a risk assessment and may step in to handle the situation, particularly prioritizing the so-called “three-no buildings.” Yeung emphasized that enforcement actions will be carried out simultaneously with the inspection and improvement works process.