The independent committee investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades concluded the first round of hearings last week. It is essential that we get to the bottom of the human and systemic errors that led to the Tai Po inferno.
There were many, as anticipated. Fragmentation of responsibility was rampant, which is probably expected for projects of this size with so many parties involved. If the government isn’t there to make sure that things are done properly, monitor and enforce the standards it has set to protect the lives and property of its residents, then it has failed at its most fundamental job.
From what we have seen from the reports on the first round of hearings, the government isn’t as efficient or effective as it would like us to believe despite the reforms that have been introduced.
The line different government departments have taken when questioned on their role in checking fire hazards and the fireproof quality of material used has basically been “it’s not our responsibility”. On residents’ complaints over construction workers smoking on site, an occupational safety officer from the Labour Department explained that “public safety matters” did not fall under its supervision.
The Labour Department, Fire Services Department and the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit (ICU) all insisted it wasn’t their responsibility to ensure that the building material used in the renovation of Wang Fuk Court met required fireproof standards. Rules were set, but no one thought it was their job to supervise.
The result? An incredible number of lives lost, families torn apart and displaced, homes and lifetimes’ worth of memories destroyed.
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