A Fire Services Department (FSD) official has told a public hearing investigating the Wang Fuk Court blaze that water tank maintenance works that lasted more than half a year were acceptable. Keung Sai-ming, assistant director licensing and certification at the Fire Services Department (FSD), leaves the Wang Fuk Court fire hearing in Central on April 10, 2026. Photo: James Lee/HKFP. Keung Sai-ming, assistant director of licensing and certification at the FSD, testified at the hearing on Friday – days after a fire services contractor’s director said that the firm had shut down fire hydrant and hose reel systems for months.
It was revealed on Wednesday that China Status Development and Engineering had filed a total of 85 shutdown extensions across the estate’s eight blocks since April last year to enable water tank maintenance – seven months before the fire.
Keung told the independent committee’s lead lawyer Victor Dawes on Friday that the FSD had never asked why the fire services contractor’s repairs took so long, as some water tank works, in his experience, had taken seven to eight months. No questions would be asked as long as the works were ongoing, he said.
‘Didn’t find it odd’
Keung said that the contractor might have to handle tendering exercises or investigate the cause of the water leakage — all processes that “require time.”
Dawes then asked the FSD official whether he “didn’t find it odd” that the tank maintenance went on for seven months. “Is that your evidence?” Dawes asked Keung, who answered: “Correct.”
Keung also told the committee that the FSD would take action only after a shutdown lasted more than a year. Only about 1,000 out of the 6,000 rectification works in 2024 were not completed within nine months, while most were resolved within a year, he added.
Dawes also presented on Friday a code of practice stipulating that the FSD may take enforcement action if a major defect is not rectified within two months. Wang Fuk Court residential buildings after the fire. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. Keung told the committee that the water tank leakage was not a major defect, contrary to an internal report Dawes presented, indicating it was.
But Judge David Lok, who chairs the committee, questioned whether the distinction between a minor or major defect made any meaningful difference, as the fire safety facilities ended up inoperable in either case.
No spot checks
Wang Fuk Court had been undergoing a large-scale renovation for more than a year when the deadly blaze struck in late November. The city’s deadliest fire in nearly eight decades killed 168 people and displaced thousands. Asked if the department knew that major renovation works would come with heightened fire risks due to scaffolding and facade works, Keung said he “does not agree entirely,” pointing to the availability of both compliant and non-compliant scaffolding nets on the market.
Keung confirmed that the department had no policy for additional surprise inspections during large-scale works and agreed that it was an area for improvement.
Addressing Dawes’ question as to why the FSD had no spot check measures, Keung said that after the fire, the department had implemented such arrangements for buildings undergoing or set to undergo renovation works.
Earlier on Friday morning, Keung said that it was illegal for personnel at Wang Fuk Court’s estate management company to turn off fire safety equipment at the housing complex. Keung Sai-ming (centre), assistant director licensing and certification at the Fire Services Department (FSD), leaves the Wang Fuk Court fire hearing in Central on April 10, 2026. Photo: James Lee/HKFP. Keung also said that ISS EastPoint electrician Law Kwok-shui’s deactivation of the estate’s fire alarms amounted to “misrepresentation” under Hong Kong’s fire services regulations.
The committee heard last week that Law unknowingly switched off all the fire alarms months before the tragedy. Law told the committee that he was afraid he would be punished if he refused the order.
According to the regulations, only workers with a fire safety licence are allowed to handle relevant equipment.