Table of Contents
More than 300 people have been trapped in a 38-story skyscraper in the Chinese city of Hong Kong because of a fire in the building, allegedly caused by an electrical fault, the territory’s authorities have confirmed.
Fire traps more than 300 people in skyscraper
A week ago China experienced another similar fire in a 25-storey building that fortunately did not claim any human casualties either.
The World Trade Center, the skyscraper where Wednesday’s fire originated, was currently under renovation and it is believed that the fire may have started in the control room at lunchtime (at 12.37 local time), forcing massive evacuations of workers and customers of the mall.
In addition to hundreds of office workers, the skyscraper also houses restaurants and stores. The building, called the World Trade Centre, is located in Causeway Bay, an area that covers two districts of Hong Kong and has numerous skyscrapers, shopping malls and stores.
No deaths have been reported in the accident
The Hong Kong Police have indicated that more than 300 people are on the roof of the building and added that 160 others have been evacuated, while a total of eight people have had to be hospitalized, as reported by The Sun newspaper.
So far no deaths have been reported, however, rescue operations by firefighters are still continuing and the fire has not yet been extinguished.
How did the fire start
Hong Kong police have reported that the fire broke out in the engine room before the scaffolding caught fire. If so, the flames would have originated on the first floor before spreading throughout the building, which houses a shopping mall and various offices.
The fire was upgraded by the authorities to a level three incident shortly after it started. The severity of fires is determined by the territory on a scale of one to five, the latter being the highest severity level.
Trapped people being rescued at Hong Kong’s World Trade Centre after a major fire pic.twitter.com/1XHGmVr9sz
— SCMP Hong Kong (@SCMPHongKong) December 15, 2021
- Facebook Messenger