Toronto resident Paul Chow was devastated when the apartment where he grew up made international news after a raging inferno tore through seven highrise towers in Hong Kong, leaving more than 100 dead and hundreds missing.
It has been a roller-coaster of emotions for Chow, who has gone from worry to sadness, distress and anger as he watched the place he lived for more than 30 years become engulfed in flames, knowing many of his former neighbours were unaccounted for.
“I want to cry and feel speechless,” said Chow, adding the tragedy has kept him up at night.
The deadly fire, the worst in Hong Kong in decades, ripped through much of the eight-block Wang Fuk Court housing complex in Hong Kong’s Tai Po district Wednesday.
The blaze jumped rapidly from one building to the next as foam panels and bamboo scaffolding covered in green mesh netting installed by a construction company caught fire.
Hong Kong Fire Services said it took firefighters a day to get the fire under control, noting it was fully extinguished by Friday morning, about 40 hours after it started.
Chow was a former councillor of Tai Po District in Hong Kong before moving to Toronto in 2022. He said the apartment complex is a little more than 40 years old, and most of its residents are seniors.
Chow said his parents and his sister live on the seventh floor in one of the buildings, and he rushed to get in touch with them as soon as he saw the news.
Fortunately, Chow said his parents were on vacation when the fire broke out, and his sister was at work.
He said while his loved ones are safe and temporarily staying at a family member’s home, his parents still aren’t allowed to go inside to check the condition of their unit.
Before the fire, the Wang Fuk Court complex had been under renovation. Exterior walls of the highrises had been shrouded in green mesh netting and bamboo scaffolding.
Officials in Hong Kong said they are now investigating the materials used — both the netting on the scaffolding and the foam panels covering windows — to see whether they contributed to the fire.
Chow said the inferno has left his family heartbroken. They are also frustrated as they just put money toward the renovation before the fire.
“We paid more than 100,000 Hong Kong dollars (about C$17,952) for the construction, and it caught on fire and many people lost their lives,” said Chow with red, tear-filled eyes.
“This is very ridiculous, and I don’t even know why this could have happened in a modern society like Hong Kong.”
Chow said he believes the fire was human-caused and that it could have been avoided.
Chow said he hopes the people and companies responsible will be held accountable, adding the Hong Kong government should take more action to ensure affected residents have a warm place to stay as they await compensation.
“The most important thing is still to find out the truth,” said Chow, adding he appreciates the world’s attention as it will keep pressure on local authorities.
Lina Chiu from Richmond, B.C., moved to B.C. from Hong Kong 30 years ago, and she said she has two friends, a couple, living in the Wang Fuk Court. She “almost broke down” after losing touch with them Wednesday.
Chiu was relieved to learn, after a number of phone calls and messages on WhatsApp, that her friends were safe. However, they lost everything in the fire.
“My friends said they didn’t have much time to bring valuable items with them when they tried to escape from the burning flames,” Chiu said in an interview in Chinese on Saturday.
“They only brought their ID cards, phones and bank cards. They didn’t even have time to bring some clothes.”
She added both have cancer and couldn’t grab their medicine before they fled.
“When you are fighting for your life, you don’t have time to think,” she said.
Chiu said she has become the emotional anchor for her friends, with frequent phone calls and tons of messages every day to ensure they don’t feel lonely.
“It’s heartbreaking to see my friends have lost their homes, but they told me that they are safe and the government has arranged a hotel for them to stay temporarily for two months,” Chiu said.
Chiu said she was just in Hong Kong visiting her friends two months ago, and the recent tragedy left her in disbelief.
“Life is so impermanent and unpredictable, but at least they are safe,” Chiu said.
Hong Kong started a three-day official mourning period from Saturday to Monday to remember those killed in the fire. Canadians with ties to Hong Kong are looking for ways to lift each other up amid difficult times.
Vancouver resident Melody Kwan, who is a registered clinical counselor in B.C., launched a free art therapy session to support Hongkongers who are grieving.
Kwan, who moved from Hong Kong to Vancouver three years ago, said she believes many Hongkongers felt sad and overwhelmed with grief when they heard the news, especially people with roots in Hong Kong but who are not living there at the moment.
“Everyone wants to do something for our home city, and we really want to contribute our effort or our knowledge to help people who are suffering,” said Kwan.
Kwan said the art therapy workshop will allow participants to use art, including writing poems, to freely express their emotions.
“We hope that this can be an activity that people can show mutual understanding, and we can support each other through the activity,” said Kwan.
Global Affairs Canada estimates there are about 300,000 Canadians living in Hong Kong. The agency said it’s not aware of any Canadian citizens affected by the fire in Hong Kong.
“Canada is deeply saddened by this tragic fire. We extend our heartfelt condolences to the families and loved ones of those who lost their lives, and wish a full and speedy recovery to all those injured,” read the statement.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 29, 2025.
— with files from The Associated Press
Nono Shen, The Canadian Press
