‘Incisive’ final report on Tai Po blaze singles out 4 government bodies

An independent committee investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades has submitted its final report to the government, with a source saying the document spans more than 10 chapters and singles out four government bodies for accountability.

The blaze at Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po on November 26, 2025, killed 168 people and displaced nearly 5,000 residents.

The judge-led panel said on Thursday that it had submitted the final report to Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu.

“With the evidence and materials received as the factual framework, the committee has completed its inquiry work on the matters set out in its terms of reference, and prepared the report accordingly,” the committee said.

A source told the South China Morning Post that the report contained more than 10 chapters detailing the committee’s findings on the causes of the fire.

The report singled out four government bodies for accountability – the Fire Services Department, the Buildings Department, the Labour Department and the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit – as well as some civil servants named during the hearings, the insider said.

The source added that the report also included recommendations on construction material standards and measures to combat bid-rigging.

The blaze engulfed seven of the estate’s eight buildings and was Hong Kong’s deadliest fire since 1948.

Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu ordered the establishment of the committee after the fire, tasking it with investigating the causes of the blaze and problems in the city’s building maintenance sector.

Chaired by High Court judge David Lok Kai-hong, the panel held 30 public sessions from March, calling about 80 witnesses, including residents, workers, fire services installation contractors, firefighters, government officials and experts.

The committee’s lead counsel, Victor Dawes SC, identified six “human failures” that led to the outbreak. These included the use of non-fire-retardant scaffolding mesh, the widespread installation of combustible polyfoam boards over windows, the deactivation of the fire alarm system and the suspension of the fire hosepipe reel system.

The other failures involved temporary openings in emergency staircases, where fire-rated windows had been replaced with movable boards, and workers’ smoking habits.

At the final hearing, the committee’s legal team presented a 627-page closing statement, blaming the “latency of failures” for the disaster.

The statement said the government bore “unshirkable responsibility” for the tragedy and singled out the four government bodies.

The SCMP previously reported that the government would address the report’s submission “shortly” and begin disciplinary proceedings. A redacted version of the report could be made public next week at the earliest.