STORY: As firefighters continue to work to douse fires that engulfed a Hong Kong apartment complex on Thursday (November 27), evacuated residents were overwhelmed, some left wondering what would happen next.

A resident who was only identified as Mrs Wan said they had lived in the complex for over twenty years.

“All of our belongings were in this apartment, and now that it has all burned like this, what’s left?" she said. "There’s nothing left. What are we supposed to do?”

Wan’s daughter, Wendy, who was too distraught to speak, lost three of her pet parrots to the fire.

“What we hope most is that the government will help us solve this problem. We don’t have any other requests - just hope that the government can help us resolve it,” Mrs Wan said.

Police on Thursday said that the complex fire that has killed at least 44 people and left nearly 300 missing may have been caused by a "grossly negligent" construction firm using unsafe materials.

DESCRIPCIÓN DE IMÁGENES

VIDEO SHOWS: SMOULDERING RESIDENTIAL BUILDING / FIREFIGHTERS PREPARING TO WORK / FIREFIGHTERS DOUSING FLAMES IN RESIDENTIAL BUILDING / PEOPLE FILMING BURNT BUILDINGS / RESIDENTS TAKING SHELTER NEARBY / SOUNDBITES FROM EVACUATED RESIDENTS

RESENDING WITH COMPLETE SCRIPT

SHOWS: HONG KONG, CHINA (NOVEMBER 27, 2025) (REUTERS - Access all)

1. VARIOUS OF SMOULDERING APARTMENT COMPLEX

2. VARIOUS OF FIREFIGHTERS ARRIVING AND GEARING UP

3. VARIOUS OF FIREFIGHTERS PUTTING OUT FIRES IN APARTMENT COMPLEX

4. FIRE BURNING AT WINDOW IN APARTMENT COMPLEX

5. RESIDENTS MRS WAN (FIRST NAME NOT GIVEN), 51, AND DAUGHTER WENDY WAN, 23, CRYING

6. MRS WAN LOOKING AT REMAINS OF APARTMENT COMPLEX

7. (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) RESIDENT OF WANG FUK COURT BLOCK 1 FOR 20 YEARS, MRS WAN (FIRST NAME NOT GIVEN), 51, SAYING:

“We bought this apartment more than twenty years ago. All of our belongings were in this apartment, and now that it has all burned like this, what’s left? There’s nothing left. What are we supposed to do?”

8. MRS WAN SPEAKING WITH ANOTHER RESIDENT, DAUGHTER WENDY ON PHONE

9. RESIDENT WENDY CRYING WHILE ON PHONE

10. (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) RESIDENT OF WANG FUK COURT BLOCK 1 FOR 20 YEARS, MRS WAN (FIRST NAME NOT GIVEN), 51, SAYING:

“How do I feel now? I even feel like dying. Seeing it like this and being unable to help - what can we do?”

11. VARIOUS OF PEOPLE FILMING SMOULDERING APARTMENT COMPLEX

12. (SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) RESIDENT OF WANG FUK COURT BLOCK 1 FOR 20 YEARS, MRS WAN (FIRST NAME NOT GIVEN), 51, SAYING:

“What we hope most is that the government will help us solve this problem. We don’t have any other requests - just hope that the government can help us resolve it.”

13. VARIOUS OF EVACUATED RESIDENTS TAKING SHELTER NEARBY

14. RESIDENTS GATHERING

15. RESIDENTS LOOKING AT SMOULDERING APARTMENT COMPLEX

16. (SOUNDBITE) (Cantonese) EVACUATED RESIDENT WHO LIVES IN BUILDING NEXT TO WANG FUK COURT, DAISY YAN, 60, SAYING:

“When I was out walking, I saw this one (pointing at Block 3) was on fire. Now it is getting even darker and still on fire. Then I knew I could not return. Now the fire of Block 3 has subsided, but Block 1 is still on fire. I do not know if I can return home tonight.”

17. VARIOUS OF EVACUATED RESIDENTS TAKING SHELTER NEARBY

18. EVACUATED RESIDENT LOOKING AT SMOULDERING APARTMENT COMPLEX NEXT TO MEDIA

19. (SOUNDBITE) (Cantonese) EVACUATED RESIDENT WHO LIVES IN BUILDING NEXT TO WANG FUK COURT, DAISY YAN, 60, SAYING:

“A lot of my friends and friends of friends are living in the same complex. Some are uncontactable. I feel like…if it is not happening to me, I would not feel much. But experiencing first-hand now, I felt distressed.”

20. VARIOUS OF SMOULDERING APARTMENT COMPLEX