11 detained in Hong Kong over investigation of residential complex fire

Authorities have arrested 11 people in connection with the massive fire at a high-rise apartment complex in Hong Kong worst blaze in nearly 80 years, as they investigate possible corruption and the use of unsafe materials during renovations at the Wang Fuk Court complex, Report informs via Reuters.

Rescue operations at the site in the district of Tai Po, near the border with mainland China, concluded on Friday, though police say they may find more bodies as they comb through the hazardous, burnt-out buildings in coming weeks.

The fire started on Wednesday afternoon and rapidly engulfed seven of the eight 32-storey blocks at the complex, which were wrapped in bamboo scaffolding and green mesh and layered with foam insulation for the renovations.

Hong Kong's anti-graft body said it had arrested eight people on Friday including an engineering consultant, a scaffolding subcontractor and an intermediary.

Earlier, police arrested two directors and an engineering consultant of Prestige Construction, a firm identified by the government as doing maintenance on Wang Fuk Court for more than a year, on suspicion of manslaughter for using unsafe materials, including flammable foam boards blocking windows.