The key facts
- An independent commission named a smoldering cigarette butt as the most likely cause of the Wang Fuk Court fire, which killed 168 people
- There is no direct evidence; the scenarios of a short circuit, gas leak, spontaneous combustion, and sparks have been ruled out
- After the report, chief executive John Lee apologized and housing secretary Winnie Ho resigned
The commission's findings
An unextinguished cigarette may have been the cause of the fire at the Wang Fuk Court residential complex in Hong Kong, which claimed the lives of 168 people. This is the conclusion of an independent commission that investigated the November 2025 tragedy — its report is quoted by the broadcaster RTHK, which is cited by Life.ru. According to the investigation, a smoldering cigarette butt could have ignited paper materials on an external landing next to apartments No. 104 and No. 105 in the Hong Chong block. Two intact cigarette butts and fragments of a third were found in the fire debris, and workers had been smoking at the site for several months before the tragedy.
Evidence and ruled-out scenarios
The commission has no direct proof that the fire started because of a cigarette: the conclusion is based on a combination of circumstantial evidence that made this cause the most likely. Other scenarios — a short circuit, a gas leak, spontaneous combustion, and sparks from construction work — were ruled out by experts. It is worth noting that the theory that workers had been smoking was raised back in November 2025, immediately after the tragedy, along with attention to the flammable protective netting and bamboo scaffolding along which the fire spread between floors — Life.ru previously reported this.
Why the fire turned into a catastrophe
The investigation identified a number of violations that turned a localized fire into a catastrophe: the renovation used protective netting without fire-resistant properties, unsafe construction practices were allowed, and staff without proper qualifications were assigned to fire-fighting equipment. The fire spread rapidly along facades and vertical shafts, thick smoke hampered evacuation, and burning bamboo structures and construction debris at the entrances cut the time available for rescue. The commission also pointed to violations by contractors and insufficient oversight by government agencies.
Scale of the tragedy and political consequences
The fire broke out on November 26, 2025 and engulfed seven of the complex's eight residential towers, home to about 4,800 people; the blaze was not fully extinguished until two days later. It is the deadliest fire in Hong Kong in many decades. After the report was published, the city's chief executive, John Lee, apologized to the victims and the families of the dead, and housing secretary Winnie Ho resigned.
