Inspection order ignored for 7 years at Hong Kong building where fire killed man

The owners of an ageing Hong Kong residential building where a blaze killed a subdivided flat tenant have ignored a government compulsory inspection order for seven years, while lawmakers have urged authorities to address electrical and fire safety risks before new regulations on subpar housing take effect.

A day after the fire in the 67-year-old Mido Apartments building on King’s Road in North Point left a man in his sixties dead and six others injured, police and firefighters returned to the scene on Sunday to conduct an investigation.

The blaze broke out in one of four flats on the 14th floor, which had been partitioned into eight subdivided units. The lift entrance and common areas were blackened by smoke.

According to the Buildings Department’s website, Mido Apartments received a compulsory inspection order in July 2018 but has never complied. The Post has contacted the department for comment.

A notice posted in the building, dated earlier this month, showed that the Incorporated Owners of Mido Apartments will meet the Urban Renewal Authority and three engineering consultants on Tuesday to discuss an application for a subsidy programme for fire safety improvements.

Initial police investigations suggest the fire started at an air conditioner inside one of the subdivided flats.