Hong Kong's worst fire in decades renews scrutiny of bamboo scaffolding
All eight of its 31-storey blocks were undergoing renovation and were completely wrapped in bamboo scaffolding when the flames began to spread.
The widespread use of bamboo scaffolding in Hong Kong is under renewed scrutiny after a massive blaze ripped through several high-rise blocks in the Tai Po district today (26 November), killing at least 13 people and injuring 15 others — the city's deadliest fire in decades.
The fire erupted at Wang Fuk Court, a major public housing estate built in 1983 and home to around 4,600 residents. All eight of its 31-storey blocks were undergoing renovation and were completely wrapped in bamboo scaffolding when the flames began to spread.
Although investigators have not yet determined the cause of the Tai Po fire, officials say the blaze's rapid spread across the bamboo structures and onto neighbouring buildings will be central to the ongoing probe.
Keep updated, follow The Business Standard's Google news channel
Footage reviewed by the BBC shows fire racing rapidly across the bamboo structure, which encased the buildings in tightly-bound layers of poles and protective netting.
According to a CNN report, bamboo scaffolding is ubiquitous across Hong Kong's dense skyline, used on skyscrapers and older tenement buildings alike, often extending hundreds of feet up and wrapped in colourful fabric safety nets.
The BBC reports that while bamboo has been prized for generations for its strength, flexibility and light weight, authorities have increasingly questioned its safety.
Earlier this year, the government's Development Bureau highlighted its high combustibility and vulnerability to structural deterioration.
Bureau spokesperson Terence Lam said bamboo scaffolds have "intrinsic weaknesses such as variation in mechanical properties, deterioration over time and high combustibility," raising concerns about their continued suitability.
In March, the Development Bureau mandated that 50% of new public building projects must use metal scaffolding instead, saying the shift is needed to "better protect workers" and align with practices in "advanced cities."
Between January 2018 and August 2025, at least 24 deaths were linked to bamboo scaffolding accidents, according to Hong Kong's Labour Department.
Today's fire appears to be the most deadly blaze the city has experienced since 1997, when 17 people were killed after a fire tore through a karaoke bar. In 2011, another major blaze in the Fa Yuen Street area of Mong Kok left nine dead.
