A massive fire engulfed the Wang Fuk Court residential estate in Hong Kong on Wednesday, sparking discussions about the potential for new firefighting technologies to boost rescue capabilities.
It was Hong Kong’s deadliest inferno in recent decades, as fire rapidly spread across seven adjoining residential blocks covered in bamboo scaffolding. Residential high-rises are closely clustered in the densely populated city.
Since 2000, China has built almost 1,600 skyscrapers – 60 per cent of the global total – eclipsing the early 20th century high-rise boom in the United States.
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To address firefighting challenges in dense urban landscapes, researchers and firefighters in China have been developing and adopting new technologies designed to withstand high temperatures, locate fires and reach upper floors.
Still, fire safety engineers and combustion scientists stressed that prevention was crucial, noting that the recent conflagration in Hong Kong exceeded the scope of both human intervention and current technology.
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They also pointed to the physical limitations of using large fire trucks in the city’s cramped streets.
