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The city's chief executive, John Lee, has ordered the creation of an independent committee to examine the reasons of a catastrophic blaze that took a minimum of 151 individuals.

A Blaze of Unprecedented Scale

Last Wednesday, seven of eight residential blocks at the Wang Fuk Court—that was in the midst of major refurbishment—were consumed by a blaze. Investigators have since found that safety scaffolding mesh surrounding the buildings fell short of requirements for fire resistance.

No fewer than 13 individuals have been arrested for alleged culpable homicide, including the senior figures of a contractor.

"It is a terrible tragedy, the fire was immense. Reform is necessary. Failures have been detected in different stages. Hence we must respond rigorously to ensure that all these gaps are eliminated," he said.

The Probe and Its Consequences

The fire—that propagated rapidly both upwards and from building to building—was finally put out by the end of the week, approximately two days after it began, and took more than 2,000 firefighters to subdue.

On that day, officers commenced entry into the buildings to gather evidence. Authorities say the inquiry could take several weeks.

Systemic Failures Identified

A number of occupants have stated they failed to hear a smoke detector when the fire erupted. Hong Kong's fire service found that alarms in all eight blocks were malfunctioning.

Hong Kong's buildings department has halted for now works on numerous private sites.

Calls for Inquiry and Arrests

In a related development, authorities are said to have arrested a 24-year-old man on charges related to sedition on Saturday. He was among a collective petitioning for an independent inquiry into the blaze. An online petition collected in excess of 10,000 endorsements in a very short time before its contents were wiped.

Two other people, including a past council member, were also taken in by officers, per local media reports.

International Reaction

Amnesty International and The monitoring body have both criticised the alleged detentions.

"The moment has come for the city's officials to openly examine the reasons of the devastating fire...as opposed to silencing those who raise appropriate concerns," stated the organization.

Background and Resident Profile

The residential complex was constructed in the early 1980s and had offered 1,984 apartments for around 4,600 residents, based on a recent official survey.

Almost four in ten of its inhabitants are estimated to be over 65 years of age. A number have been occupants of the subsidised housing estate from its inception.

Hong Kong's second-deadliest fire on record took 176 individuals in the mid-20th century and was caused by a blast on the lower level at a five-storey warehouse. The most deadly was at a local racetrack in 1918, when in excess of 600 attendees perished.