The Deadly Fire in Hong Kong

(Sorry for my English in this post. I’m writing this kinda in a rush and have no time to polish it. But I still want to post it. Sorry!)

On November 26, 2025, a fire broke out at an apartment complex in the Tai Po district, Hong Kong. On the day, I was at work, then the gym after work, and then I watched a livestream of Tottenham Hotspur vs PSG while having dinner (yes, I am a Spurs fan). Only after a busy day (and a busy week too, I barely slept this week) did I read the news from the BBC. I was speechless, slightly in tears, after seeing the whole apartment complex turned orange and red. I’ve never thought, one day I would read my precious home country in an International headline, because of a fatal fire like this. 

Before going on to share my thoughts, I just want to clarify that the “accident” isn’t caused by bamboo scaffolding. To be fair, this traditional construction craft has been adopted for a long time. Did we see incidents involved back then? We don’t, or even if there might be incidents involved, they are minimal, exceptional cases. In fact, the bamboo is quite non-flammable. You need ages to actually fire them up. Also, why would we still see those bamboos outside of the building after the long hours of fire, if they are highly flammable? The answer is fairly simple. Because the bamboo isn’t the reason. The people are, the system behind is. 

I have to admit that I only browsed Insta just today. I’ve been extremely busy recently, and so I even deleted Insta on my phone. But, seeing all those shares and reposts isn’t nothing. Seeing the citizens voluntarily buying essentials, sharing a place to stay, taking care of the pets or children for those affected by the fire isn’t nothing. Just back in few years time, right before COVID, Hong Kongers experienced the same. Helping each other, buying things for those who needed, sharing the latest information, those are all the things I saw and experienced myself personally back in 2019. You can see all that equipment piled up in a certain area or corner, hear the earnest citizens asking where to put their supplies, or even just a warm but genuine sentence: Be careful. The way that Hong Kongers helped each other back then is one of the profound memories I have in Hong Kong. And, I think, among all other Hong Kongers, most of us experienced a flashback of the memories back then, when seeing all that happened because of the fire. What happened in 2019, or this fire, shouldn’t have happened. But beyond those, plenty of stories in society are beautiful, with love shared by plenty of citizens. 

As I have said, both this fire and what happened in 2019 shouldn’t have happened. But living in a society, in this world, there’s a simple but cruel rule: even if you don’t want to engage with politics, you’re involved in politics at some points. Politics isn’t something we can avoid or not think of as a living object on the planet. This is also the reason why I did PPE, because I simply want to learn more about it. The fire itself sounds like an incident caused by some workers smoking in the construction areas. But is that really this simple? As a famous International city, would a building be so flammable easily just because there’s construction work being done? It would be justified if you’re saying the whole fire happened in a third-world country, but seriously, in Hong Kong? Since young, I’ve been reading and hearing the news of various disasters happened in China. The tainted milk powder, tofu buildings, they all happened because of the people involved cutting corners. With insufficient regulation and supervision, things like these are likely to happen. Sadly, following the plan of the Chinese government to “perfect” One Country Two Systems, more “accidents” are likely to occur in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong has, and will always be, a special place in my mind, no matter where I am. I have become the person I am today, hugely because of that lovable yet hateful place, as it has heavily influenced who I am. It’s also a place where I left so many childhood memories, and a place with a lot of my loved ones. The 18 years I spent in Hong Kong have been a big part of my life. I guess this is the reason why, even though I no longer live there, I have such a strong feeling seeing something like this happen. The distance won’t make me feel more of an outsider, and so I don’t have to take care of; rather, it hits me harder because you’re a member of the place, but you can no longer be involved with those. This powerlessness, I have once experienced, although in a slightly different way. I think Hong Kongers will understand what I’m trying to say here. 

Rest in peace to those who lost their lives because of the fire, including the brave firefighters. Speedy recovery to those who are injured. May goodness also go to those who lost their beloved ones, and fellow Hong Kongers who are grieved. We do not know if we will be told officially about the true details of this “accident” in today’s Hong Kong, but I believe there will always be some genuine ones who love Hong Kong so much to reveal the truth someday.