Rescue efforts continue in Hong Kong building fireーNHK WORLD-JAPAN NEWS
The Hong Kong government says the death toll from a massive fire at a high-rise residential complex has climbed to at least 128. About 200 people are still unaccounted for. Local media report that the fire was largely extinguished by Friday morning, 2 days after it broke out in the northern district of Taipo. Flames had engulfed seven apartment blocks at the site. Each of the buildings has more than 30 stories. I can’t get in contact with my friend. I really hope my friend will be found alive. The Hong Kong government has announced measures to support affected residents, including financial aid, to help them address urgent needs. The cause remains unknown, but local media say the fire spread along bamboo scaffolding put up for repair work. Fire authorities say protective nets used for the work may not have met fire safety standards. They have also not ruled out the possibility that a foam material used on the buildings contributed to the spread of the flames. The head of the Japan Association of Fire Protection Engineers tells NHK that the building’s structure could have been a factor. He points out that there were many indentations in the outer walls. The floor plan is extremely jagged. The depressions form cylindrical vertical cavities kind of like chimneys. These narrow spaces could have contributed to the air flowing upward and at a fast speed. Houston. Police have arrested three people from a construction company overseeing the repair project, including senior officials, on suspicion of manslaughter. For more on this, earlier, NHK World’s Tate Hata Kazo reported from Hong Kong. Kazo, what’s happening at the scene right now? Yeah, when we are here on Thursday morning, we saw plan flames coming from many rooms. But now I can’t see any fire uh from this viewpoint. Sometimes there is a burning smell in the air. Efforts to extinguish the fire continuing at the upper section of the buildings are too high for the fire trucks to reach. The complex is said to be home to about 4,000 people. They have had to find other places to shelter and you have been speaking to some of those residents. How are they doing? Evacuation centers have been set up for them near the site and many have gone there. Now volunteers have also brought emergency supplies to a nearby square to give to people affected by fire. And many here have family members or friends who are still missing. They say they hope to see progress in the rescue operations. So in addition to those rescue efforts, an investigation into the cause has begun. How are these two things progressing? The search for survivors is continuing. Many of the residents are said to have been elderly and there is a possibility they had difficulty evacuating on their own. The firefighters are making the utmost efforts to roate those still unaccounted for. Meanwhile, it’s still not clear how the fire started and why it got out of control so fast. It is believed that the investigation into the courts will be accelerated along with the rescue operations.
The death toll from a massive fire at a high-rise residential complex in Hong Kong has topped 120, with many others unaccounted for. NHK World’s Tatehata Kazuo describes what is happening at the site.
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