BBC: Hong Kong fire death toll rises to 44 VIDEO

A blaze in a residential complex in the Tai Po district has become the deadliest apartment fire in Hong Kong’s history, killing at least 44 people.

A further 279 people remain unaccounted for, Caliber.Az reports, citing BBC.

Three executives of the construction company were arrested on suspicion of manslaughter linked to highly flammable materials, including mesh and plastic sheets, that may have accelerated the spread of the fire.

More than 800 firefighters are battling a separate blaze at the Wang Fuk courthouse building, which has been burning for over 18 hours.

Authorities assigned the fire a level-five hazard rating, the most severe classification in Hong Kong.

Hundreds of residents have been relocated to temporary shelters, and emergency housing units are now being assigned to those who require relocation.

The Hong Kong Education Bureau said that thirteen schools will suspend classes today as firefighting efforts continue to disrupt traffic across the area.

A residential complex in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district caught fire at around 2:51 pm (06:51 GMT) on November 26.

The blaze started on the bamboo scaffolding set up for repair work. Because bamboo burns easily, the flames climbed the exterior rapidly, spreading into the building and then to neighbouring towers.

Renovation work had also covered the blocks in green construction netting from ground level to the rooftops, which ignited as well and accelerated the spread of the fire.

This blaze is the city’s deadliest in more than six decades. It has already equalled the death toll of the August 1962 Sham Shui Po fire, which claimed 44 lives and left hundreds homeless.

Hong Kong has not seen a comparable tragedy since November 1996, when a fire at the Garley Building in Kowloon killed 41 people and injured 81 others.

By Jeyhun Aghazada