HONG KONG (Reuters) -A blaze that ripped through a massive apartment block in Hong Kong has claimed at least 94 lives, surpassing the toll of a similar incident at London’s Grenfell Tower in 2017.
Here’s how the tragedy compares to some other major building fire incidents around the world in recent years.
Hanoi apartment block fire, Vietnam, 2023 – 56 dead
A fire at a nine-storey apartment block in Vietnam’s capital Hanoi in September 2023 killed 56 people, among them 10 children. Many others were injured after leaping from windows or on to roofs of neighbouring buildings to escape.
Authorities said the fire was sparked by an electrical fault in a motorbike on the ground floor and the building’s landlord was later sentenced to 12 years in prison for fire safety violations and illegal construction.
Vietnam’s deadliest blaze in two decades prompted stricter fire safety enforcement nationwide.
Grenfell Tower fire, UK, 2017 – 72 deaths
The fire that ripped through a 23-storey social housing block in one of London’s richest areas in June 2017 was Britain’s deadliest blaze in a residential building since World War Two
The tragedy claimed 72 lives and led to revelations that high-rise public housing buildings across Britain were wrapped in flammable cladding.
A public inquiry concluded last year blamed the disaster on failings by the government, construction industry and, most of all, the firms involved in fitting the exterior with flammable cladding.
Colectiv nightclub fire, Romania, 2015 – 65 deaths
A blaze sparked by pyrotechnics at a Bucharest nightclub in October 2015 killed 65 people in what became a symbol of corruption in Romania.
The fire broke out when fireworks used by rock band ignited non-fireproofed insulation foam, triggering a stampede towards the single-door exit.
The nightclub owners and a mayor were jailed after a court found the room was overcrowded and safety inspectors allowed it to open despite knowing it did not have a fire safety permit.
Kiss nightclub fire, Brazil, 2013 – 242 deaths
More than 200 people were killed in a similar incident in a nightclub in southern Brazil in 2013 when pyrotechnics appeared to set the ceiling on fire.
Many of the estimated 500 people inside were unable to find exits as dark smoke filled the room, police said. Two owners of the nightclub and two band members were given lengthy prison sentences.
Other fires at nightclubs in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 2004 and Rhode Island in the United States in 2003 claimed around 300 lives between them.
Shanghai high-rise fire, China, 2010 – 58 deaths
A fire blamed on unlicensed welding work during renovations gutted a 28-storey high-rise in Shanghai in November 2010, killing 58 people.
Sparks from the welding work ignited scaffolding around the structure, a preliminary investigation found.
The tragedy prompted public anger at lax enforcement of safety standards in a city that prides itself on being a modern financial hub. A year later, four former city officials were jailed for corruption and abuse of power.
(Reporting by John Geddie; Editing by Stephen Coates)
Comments