A public inquiry in Hong Kong has revealed critical communication failures during a devastating blaze at Tai Po’s Wang Fuk Court, leading to the death of a woman whose 999 emergency call was not passed to the Fire Services Department (FSD). The hearings have put inter-departmental coordination under intense scrutiny, particularly between the police’s 999 call centre and the FSD, as the community seeks answers and accountability for the tragic loss of life and severe injuries sustained.
During Wednesday’s hearing, lead counsel Victor Dawes highlighted specific instances of breakdown. In a harrowing 3:06 pm call on November 26, a woman trapped on the 17th floor of Wang Cheong House reported smoke and sought refuge in a toilet. Despite the police operator asking multiple times if she needed firefighters, the call was never forwarded to the FSD, and the woman subsequently died. Sunny Wong, deputy chief fire officer, testified that such a failure was unprecedented, stating the call “should not have been like this.” Another incident involved an elderly asthma sufferer trapped; his 9:22 pm 999 call was only relayed to the FSD an hour later, resulting in his death from severe injuries after a delayed rescue.
Wong acknowledged the need for improved communication but also noted police assistance. He described the Tai Po fire as “extraordinary” and “unprecedented,” causing an overwhelming backlog of emergency calls and significantly extended response times, with some callers waiting up to 15 minutes for FSD assistance. Despite allocating about 80 staff to a call-back support centre, Wong maintained the FSD call centre was equipped to handle the volume. He dismissed suggestions for call operators to provide real-time fire updates, emphasizing their role in information collection, and pushed back on the use of “immature” drone technology or assistance from mainland Chinese fire services due to operational differences.
The overarching lesson from the blaze, Wong stressed, must be about prevention rather than solely rescue. He asserted that rescue teams are limited against such a disaster, advocating for prevention as the starting point for all improvements. Committee chair Judge David Lok acknowledged public calls to elevate the inquiry to a statutory body with subpoena powers, noting its “pros and cons” and promising future consideration. The inquiry continues to delve into the systemic issues that contributed to the tragedy, aiming to implement robust measures to prevent similar catastrophic failures in Hong Kong’s emergency response system.
