Just One Month In, New Home Turned to Ashes: Wang Tai Residents Left With Only Ruins

Today (April 30) marks the 11th day for Wang Fuk residents to return to their homes to retrieve their belongings in phases. Among them, Wang Tai House and Wang Cheong House are the most severely hit, with a high number of fatalities.

Today (April 30) marks the 11th day for Wang Fuk residents to return to their homes to retrieve their belongings in phases. Photo by Bastille Post

Mr. Ng, Photo by Bastille Post

Mr. Ng, a resident living on a lower floor of Wang Tai House, managed to retrieve a pair of ivory chopsticks and keepsakes related to his children's births. He described his home as "reduced to ashes, and nothing is left." He said he would think about whether anything else had been overlooked this time. "Having waited for four or five months, we could still manage to get something back. I suppose it's OK," he said.

Mr. Chu, Photo by Bastille Post

Mrs. Chu, Photo by Bastille Post

Mr. and Mrs. Chu, who live on the middle floor of Wang Tai House, had lived in Kwong Fuk Estate for more than a decade before recently purchasing a unit at Wang Fuk Court. They had just finished renovations and had been living there for less than a month when the fire broke out.

The photo showing the current condition of Mr. and Mrs. Chu's unit, Photo by Bastille Post

Mr. Chu said, "The fire can be called a disaster-level. Everything turns to ashes. We have seen some photos of our unit, so we were mentally prepared. There wasn't much hope for the retrieval. We just managed to collect a few pots and bowls, which didn't burn through."

Mrs. Chu wept sorrowfully. "You really have to see it with your own eyes to know how terrible the inner condition can be," she said. Looking forward to the future, she hoped that every Wang Fuk resident could pull themselves up and that the government could provide some possible assistance. "Residents have lost their homes and are displaced. I really hope the government can do a better job to help us."

The pots and bowls retrieved by Mr. and Mrs. Chu, Photo by Bastille Post

The pots and bowls retrieved by Mr. and Mrs. Chu, Photo by Bastille Post

She mentioned that many residents originally lived in large units of 400 to 500 square feet, but the options provided by the government are limited, with only about 100 large units per location available through a ballot. "It still comes down to luck whether you can get one. It feels like everyone has to struggle for them. That doesn't feel good," she said.

The photo shown by Mr. and Mrs. Chu, Photo by Bastille Post

As for Mr. Chu, he said he would not return to the unit again. "There's no point," he said. "Just take a photo as a souvenir, and say goodbye to our past grief."

Wang Fuk residents continued to return to their units to retrieve personal belongings. Photo by Bastille Post

Ms. Chu and her family had lived in Wang Tai House for over 30 years. Their unit was severely damaged in the fire, and all their belongings,  including approximately HKD$100,000 in cash stored in a safe, were reduced to ashes. "After 30 minutes of going through our things, we realized there was nothing left to salvage," she said.

Ms. Chu, Photo by Bastille Post

Ms. Chu, along with her husband and daughter, returned home to retrieve whatever remained. While she and her husband managed to hold back their tears, their 27-year-old daughter, who had lived in the unit since birth, was devastated. She broke down and cried for nearly half an hour. Only after she had calmed down did the three of them head back downstairs.

Before leaving their former home, they took photos in every corner of the charred unit as a final farewell. They also posed together for a family portrait to preserve the memory.

Wang Tai House was severely damaged in the fire. Photo by Bastille Post

Ms. Chu added that since her father had passed away in the Chinese Mainland before, she and her husband made three trips to the Mainland to bring back the approximately HKD$100,000 cash he had left her, which they then placed in a safe at home. Before they could deposit the money in a bank, the fire struck.

The burned cash shown by Ms. Chu, Photo by Bastille Post

But luckily, she retrieved a few photo albums. "There were originally more than ten at my home, but now I've only found three or four."

The burned bathroom of Ms. Chu's unit, Photo by Bastille Post

As for the future, Ms. Chu said that since everything had been burned to ashes, she didn't have any plans at the moment. She mentioned that she would wait and see what the government arranges in the coming days. She also expressed hope that a residents' meeting would be held so that affected families could understand the follow-up arrangements.

Wang Fuk residents continued to go upstairs to retrieve their belongings. Photo by Bastille Post

According to police at the scene, a total of 58 households from Wang Kin House and Wang Tai House registered to go upstairs this morning to retrieve their belongings.