The death toll from Hong Kong’s worst fire in decades has risen to 160 after another resident of the inferno-ravaged Wang Fuk Court housing estate in Tai Po was confirmed as a fatality, the city’s police chief has said, with six people still missing.
Commissioner of Police Joe Chow Yat-ming also said on Tuesday that the next stage of work at the site would involve removing scaffolding to search for bodies.
He also revealed that a piece of bone had been found on the ground after piles of bamboo scaffolding were removed, but it had yet to be determined whether it was human or from an animal.
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The death toll from the November 26 blaze was increased from 159 to 160 after some remains were found to be from an elderly resident and a domestic helper using DNA samples from both families, Chow said.
The identities of 120 dead had been confirmed, with the remaining 40 pending DNA verification, he said.
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“As we are verifying other remains as to whether they are human or from animals, we will see if we need to adjust the death toll,” Chow warned.
The confirmation of another fatality came after a forensic pathologist took various samples from a victim found earlier and discovered the remains of another person, Chow said.