Hong Kong fire safety orders from 16 years ago not complied with at building where blaze erupted, killing 5
- Buildings Department says fire safety orders issued in 2008, but owners’ corporation had still not met requirements
- Following deadly blaze at New Lucky House, lawmakers want authorities to get power to carry out fire safety work on buildings where owners have ignored orders
The low compliance rate sparked calls from lawmakers to speed up a legal amendment to give authorities the power to carry out fire safety improvement work on old buildings.
An intense fire erupted in the 60-year-old 16-storey New Lucky House in Jordan, which had 35 registered guest houses, 100 subdivided flats and many commercial premises. Five people died and 43 others were injured, some seriously.
The Buildings Department said it had issued fire safety orders to the owners’ corporation in 2008, requiring them to upgrade protection measures to meet modern requirements.
These included replacing fire doors, enclosing non-emergency facilities with fire-resistant materials and providing fixed windows with fire-resistant capabilities.
A spokesman said the owners’ corporation had engaged consulting companies in 2015 and 2020 to handle the orders. The department had also followed up and sent advisory letters. But the orders had not been complied with to date.
