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Hong Kong's leader, John Lee, has directed the formation of an separate inquiry panel to examine the reasons of a devastating fire that killed at least 151 people.

A Blaze of Unprecedented Scale

This past Wednesday, most of the apartment buildings at the housing complex—which was subject to significant upgrades—went up in flames. A probe subsequently revealed that construction site netting surrounding the buildings failed to meet flame retardant standards.

A minimum of 13 individuals have been arrested for suspected manslaughter, among them the senior figures of a contractor.

"It is a terrible tragedy, it is a major blaze. Reform is necessary. Yes, we have identified failures in multiple areas. Hence we must take decisive action to guarantee all these gaps are eliminated," he said.

Investigation and Aftermath

The inferno—which spread quickly both vertically and across the separate towers—was only fully doused by the morning of Friday, approximately two days after it began, and took in excess of 2,000 emergency responders to bring under control.

On that day, police began entering the buildings to collect forensic material. Authorities say the probe could last several weeks.

Shortcomings Uncovered

Multiple inhabitants have stated they were not alerted by a fire alarm when the fire erupted. Hong Kong's fire service discovered that warning systems in each building were not working effectively.

Hong Kong's buildings department has halted for now works on 30 private projects.

Demands for Probe and Detentions

Additionally, officers took into custody a young man on suspicion of incitement on the weekend. He was part of a collective petitioning for an separate review into the blaze. An digital signature drive collected more than 10,000 supporters in under 24 hours before its information was removed.

Two other people, among them a past council member, were also taken in by authorities, as reported by local media reports.

Global Response

The rights group and Human Rights Watch have both condemned the said apprehensions.

"Now is the time for the local government to thoroughly and publicly probe the reasons of the devastating fire...as opposed to muzzling those who ask legitimate questions," stated the organization.

Background and Resident Profile

The housing estate was completed in 1983 and had offered 1,984 apartments for around 4,600 occupants, based on a 2021 government census.

Almost four in ten of its residents are estimated to be over 65 years of age. A number have been occupants of the government-supported development since it was built.

Hong Kong's second-worst blaze on record killed 176 lives in 1948 and was the result of a ground-floor explosion at a multi-story storage facility. The most deadly was at Happy Valley Racecourse in 1918, when over 600 attendees perished.