The old apartment burned down, while the rent for the new apartment is too high, many Wang Fuk Court apartment residents face an uncertain future.
Grief still weighs heavily on residents of the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex, Dai Po district, Hong Kong, after a fire on November 26 left 146 people dead. In addition to mental pain, they also had to face material losses and insecurity about the future, when the house they had lived in for many years was seriously damaged.
Some older residents have lived at Wang Fuk Court for decades, since the apartment complex was put into operation in 1983. The apartment complex is old and rundown, but is still their greatest asset, in the context of Hong Kong’s housing prices being among the highest in the world.
But now they are left with nothing, when all the property in the house burned down, and the apartment buildings are no longer safe to live in because the fire seriously weakened the structure. These people said their greatest hope is that the house will be rebuilt quickly so they can return and live their remaining years here.
A homeless resident rests on a donated mattress in the hallway inside the shopping center near the Wang Fuk Cour apartment building on November 27. Image: AFP
On November 28, Ms. To Yim-ming and her husband, Mr. Ip Kam-choi, both 78 years old, moved into a studio apartment of about 13 square meters at Lok Sin Village, a temporary housing project in Dai Bo district, which is hosting a number of people affected by the fire.
Ms. To said the new apartment is much smaller than her 37 m2 house that burned. It had no furniture or separate kitchen and she and her husband had to sleep on mattresses on the floor. Besides, they are only allowed to stay here for two weeks.
“I don’t know what will happen to us in 14 days,” she said. “I can’t stay at my children’s house because their house is small and there are young children, while I don’t have enough money to rent another apartment.”
Ms. To and her husband have lived in the Wang Tao House building in the Wang Fuk Court area since 1983 and had never thought about moving before the fire occurred. She called on the government to allocate another social housing apartment for her and her husband and hoped the burned building would be rebuilt so that one day she could return.
Also among those moving into temporary housing are retired driver Yuen Yiu-man, 68, and his wife, Chan Lai-kwan, 66.
The couple slept in the living room of their daughter’s 18 square meter apartment for two nights before moving into the temporary apartment on November 28.
“There are no beds or chairs here. We just sit on the floor,” Mr. Yuen said, adding that the two-week stay is too short and they are extremely worried about the future.
“The government should arrange long-term housing for us. It doesn’t need to be too big, a simple apartment of about 18 square meters with windows is enough,” he said.
The scale of the tragedy has posed a serious challenge for Hong Kong, a city known for its housing shortage and sky-high rents.
According to the special zone government, each person affected by the fire will receive $1,285 in emergency benefits. In addition, each household will also receive more than 6,400 USD in living allowance this week to stabilize their lives. For many people, this amount of help is truly a lifesaver.
Ms. Siu Mui, 72 years old, had to sleep on the floor of a shopping mall near the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex for two nights because the shelters were too far away and her two sons’ house was not large enough.
“I get enough food and drinks here and I know there are free hotel rooms, but there’s no bus to take me there,” she said. “I’m fine if I have to stay here for two or three days, but I won’t be able to rest assured if there’s no timeline on when we can go home.”
Mr. Lee, another resident of the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex, was informed by a volunteer that they were trying to find a temporary house for him and his wife in Tsuen Wan, an area more than 20 kilometers away.
“It will be a completely new place that we need to adapt to from scratch, but we don’t have a better choice,” he said. “We are forced to accept whatever options are presented.”
In addition to stranded Hong Kongers, many migrant workers from the Philippines or Indonesia who came to the city to work as maids also suddenly found themselves with nowhere to go and no idea where to get help.
Bethune House, an emergency shelter for immigrant women, has received a flood of calls in the past few days from workers looking for help, said facility director Edwina A. Antonio.
Some people had to go to shelters because their owners had lost their homes. Many people did not have clean clothes or basic necessities, because they did not bring any belongings with them while fleeing the fire.
“We met two people yesterday, they were immediately fired by their employer,” Antonio said on November 28. “For those who were not fired, they are worried about their job future because their employer’s new residence is too small.”
Calls for help prompted her to lead a group of volunteers to set up a stall near Wang Fuk Court to provide physical and emotional support to the community.
But residents who lost their homes in the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex moved to a temporary housing complex in Dai Bo district last week. Image: SCMP
“The future is very uncertain for them,” Ms. Antonio said. “It will not be easy to recover from this tragedy.”
Hong Kong Housing Authority leader Ho Wing-yin said on November 27 that the government will arrange more than 1,400 temporary apartments for residents affected by the fire.
Cherry Lee Yim-ming, project development manager at the Kowloon Road Lac Thien Charity Association, which operates Lok Sin Village, said about 130 Wang Fuk Court residents have moved into 59 apartments at their temporary housing complex, most of them elderly.
Good House, another housing complex in Dai Bo, also took in residents who lost their homes due to the fire. Anthea Lee Shuk-wai, chief executive of charity SideBySide, which operates Good House, said about 160 households had moved in. After two weeks, if they want to extend their stay, they can submit a request. Residents do not need to pay rent or electricity and water bills. They are also provided with free meals and transportation.
Medical worker Yuri Ho Tsez-yui, 34, moved into an apartment at Good House with her husband and sent her three-year-old daughter to an acquaintance’s house because the temporary accommodation was too small. She plans to stay as long as she is allowed to before thinking about renting an apartment.
“I don’t want to leave my daughter but this place is too small,” Ho said, calling on the government to find long-term resettlement arrangements, such as public housing, for those affected by the tragedy.
Housewife Yuki Lau, 33 years old, along with her husband, 7-year-old daughter, 5-year-old son, 3-month-old infant daughter and maid had to sleep on the living room floor of a friend’s house for two nights before moving to Good House.
Lau hopes the government will provide better resettlement options for her family in Dai Bo to avoid disrupting her children’s lives and studies.
“My children are too young,” she said.
The Wang Fuk Court apartment fire tragedy once again focused public opinion on Hong Kong’s housing crisis. According to surveys conducted by organizations such as Demographia or UBS in the late 2010s and early 2020s, Hong Kong is continuously ranked as the most expensive housing market globally with house prices far exceeding the average income.
A resident who lost his home in the Wang Fuk Court apartment complex moved to a temporary apartment in Lok Sin Village. Image: SCMP
The fire is raising new questions about whether the Hong Kong government has responded aggressively enough to the housing problem. Although authorities have previously promised to speed up social housing projects and land acquisition, progress has so far been slow and demand for housing continues to outstrip supply.
Wall Street Journal Even ambitious new projects, such as the proposed “Lantau Tomorrow” artificial island, will take years or decades to relieve Hong Kong’s housing pressure, analysts say.