Enforcement agencies “failed in their duties” despite receiving complaints about the renovation project at Wang Fuk Court, a former member of the property’s board of owners has said at a hearing into the deadly fire.
Testifying on Monday, Jason Kong said the renovation project at Wang Fuk Court had many warning signs, in particular, flammable items used as protective material surrounding the buildings.
“There were so many warning signs and enforcement agencies failed in their duties,” he said in Cantonese.
The apartment complex was undergoing a large-scale renovation project when the fire broke out in November and killed 168 people. The renovation project was carried out by Prestige Construction & Engineering, while the project consultant was Will Power Architects.
Kong said he made reports to the government. “I have asked the enforcement agencies to conduct patrols proactively and pursue the matter,” he said.
“If they… had done this earlier, the whole fire could have been avoided… I did what I could do.”
The initial investigation showed that the use of non-retardant protective netting and flammable foam boards worsened the spread of the fire, which started at Wang Cheong House and quickly engulfed six other residential towers.
Kong said on Monday that he had raised safety concerns about safety nets at the Housing Bureau’s Independent Control Unit (ICU). A woman who worked in the ICU, Amanda Lau, responded to that but did not say whether the department checked whether the nets were fire-resistant.
Kong asked Lau, as well as Prestige directors and Will Power, to testify at the hearings.
He also called for pro-establishment District Councilor Peggy Wong to testify. Between 2021 and 2024, Wong was a consultant to the board of owners of Wang Fuk Courtwho approved the controversial renovation project.
An independent committee chaired by a judge has been holding hearings to investigate the Tai Po fire since March 19. Monday marked the 15th session.
Witnesses who have testified so far have included residents of Wang Fuk Court, staff from property management company ISS EastPoint, firefighters and the chairman of the owners’ board at the time of the fire.
However, the committee revealed earlier that the directors of Prestige and Will Power, and an ISS Eastpoint manager, had refused to testify.
The consulting firm advocated the use of foam boards
Kong said on Monday that he became a member of the board of owners of Wang Fuk Court in May 2024, when it was headed by Tang Kwok-kuen.
When Kong was elected as a member, the board signed a contract with Prestige after homeowners and authorized representatives voted to hire the company as the contractor for the renovation project.
The project broke ground in July 2024. Two months later, the board of owners was ousted and replaced by a new group of homeowners after residents expressed dissatisfaction with the former board’s renovation plans.
Kong was re-elected as a member of the board of owners, chaired by Tony Tsui. Tsui testified Friday, saying the owners’ corporation tried to prevent the use of flammable materials in the renovation project, but was unsuccessful.
Kong said during the hearing that many residents were concerned about using foam board to cover their windows. However, a director at Will Power personally went to the estate and advocated the use of boards.
The board of owners later tried to push Prestige to buy fire retardant tiles to replace the foam tiles, Kong said, but to no avail.
Kong said the old and new board of owners had filed complaints about workers smoking. He had proposed imposing fines on the contractor, as well as introducing a tiered penalty system to address the issue.
However, Prestige simply responded that they would increase staff training, and the problem ultimately showed no significant improvement, Kong said.
