Seven of the 20 mesh samples collected at the four buildings in Wang Fuk Court did not meet flame-retardant standards, according to the government investigation team, and the Hong Kong Police Force has arrested 13 persons suspected of being involved in the procurement or installation of the substandard meshing.

At a news conference on Monday afternoon, Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan Kwok-ki said that government investigators had collected 20 samples across the Wang Fuk Court, and found that seven of the samples — retrieved from different floors of Wang Tai House, Wang Yan House, Wang Yan House and Wang Tao House — did not conform to fire-retardant standards.

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This conclusion contradicts a previous statement made by Secretary for Security Tang Ping-keung, claiming that the mesh materials used in the housing estate’s renovation work did satisfy requirements following preliminary tests.

Tang said that this error arose because the conditions at the time prevented the collection of a large number of samples.

Substandard mesh may have been mixed in with flame-retardant mesh for testing, said Tang.

Police said that 13 people were arrested — 12 males and one female, including engineering consultants, contractors and scaffolding supervisors — on suspicion of manslaughter.  As the investigation is ongoing, there could still be further arrests, police have stated.

Danny Woo Ying-ming, commissioner of the Independent Commission Against Corruption, said that after Typhoon Ragasa in September, 2,300 rolls of mesh that did not meet fire safety standards were purchased from local suppliers at a cost of HK$54 ($6.93) each, and were installed at eight buildings at Wang Fuk Court.  

Following the No 3 alarm blaze at Chinachem Tower in Central on Oct 18, a batch of fire-retardant netting was purchased for use at Wang Fuk Court at a price of HK$100 per roll, and installed on the lower parts of the buildings in a bid to pass the security tests.

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Chan described such tactics as extremely deceptive, designed to evade government inspections — an act which he said was not only criminal, but also disgraceful.

He criticized the perpetrators for endangering lives in the pursuit of petty gains, and pledged that the authorities will pursue their investigation to the end.

More on-site inspections and sample collections are to be carried out at the remaining buildings at Wang Fuk Court, officials said.

Chan said that as of 11 am on Monday, the Buildings Department had inspected 359 buildings that are undergoing major exterior wall repairs and had confirmed that 300 of them have scaffolding nets installed. Samples have been collected and will be sent for testing in batches.

Police found five more bodies on Monday during their search of the remaining two fire-ravaged buildings, bringing the death toll from the city’s largest-ever fire in decades to 151.

Contact the writer at atlasshao@chinadailyhk.com