A maintenance project at the fire-hit Wang Fuk Court should have been classified as high risk, but was instead categorised as minor works requiring no regular inspections, a government surveyor has told a public inquiry.

Nick Yung, a senior maintenance surveyor at the Housing Bureau’s Independent Checking Unit (ICU), gave his testimony before an independent committee investigating the massive blaze at the Tai Po housing estate on Thursday.

He was the second ICU official questioned by Victor Dawes, lead counsel for the committee, after senior maintenance surveyor Andy Ku on Wednesday.

Yung said that the maintenance project on the outer walls of all eight buildings at Wang Fuk Court was classified as low risk for the convenience of homeowners, which created a “loophole” in safety regulation, local media reported.

The surveyor said the renovation project should have been considered high risk, as it involved work on the entire outer wall of each building. However, because it was classified as minor works, it did not warrant regular inspections.

The ICU only conducts inspections when complaints are received, Yung added.

Extensive repairs on the exterior of the Tai Po estate were under way when the fire broke out in late November, ripping through seven of its eight buildings. The blaze, which killed 168 people and displaced thousands of residents, was the city’s deadliest fire since 1948.

Combustible wooden boards

During previous hearings, the committee heard that the removal and replacement of fireproof stairwell windows and fire escape doors with combustible wooden boards may have breached fire safety rules and allowed smoke to enter and spread rapidly in the building.

But Yung told the inquiry on Thursday that he had mistaken the wooden boards for a protective measure to cover damaged windows.

That prompted Dawes to point out that windows on every fifth floor were replaced and asked why Yung did not find it suspicious that so many windows had been damaged.

The surveyor replied that not all the windows had been removed.

Yung said that the ICU relied on the contractors to self-regulate and admitted that the unit’s review mechanism was “very problematic.”

Dawes said, “If even professionals fail to detect these safety issues, how can you expect residents to notice that there are problems? How could an ordinary person know that this is such a serious issue?”

Yung said the openings were not clear in photos but admitted they would have been visible if seen directly on site. Dawes responded: “Exactly, but you didn’t go down there yourselves.”

The surveyor also told the committee that it was only in January – more than a month after the fire – that the ICU was notified by the Buildings Department of “a new policy,” which came into effect in 2023, requiring random inspections of 20 per cent of minor works.

The ICU would have followed up if it had been aware of the arrangement, Yung said.

“It feels to us as though you are shirking responsibility,” said Judge David Lok, who chairs the committee.

Yung denied Lok’s contention, saying he only meant that the ICU would have had the opportunity to conduct inspections if it had been aware of the new policy.

Hong Kong Free Press journalism has been nominated for three prestigious Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) Awards – a new record for the newspaper.

HKFP photojournalist Kyle Lam’s five shots of the Tai Po fire tragedy were nominated in the Excellence in Photography category.

In the Carlos Tejada Award for Excellence in Investigative Reporting category, HKFP’s investigation into local bookstores facing simultaneous tax audits was selected as a finalist.

And Hans Tse & Kelly Ho‘s reporting on how residents of Wang Fuk Court pondered their future a month after last November’s blaze was also shortlisted for Excellence in Feature Writing.

The finalists were selected from a competitive pool of over 700 entries across English, Chinese, and Bahasa Indonesia categories, according to a Thursday SOPA press release.

“This year’s entries once again highlight the strength and diversity of our industry, with a growing number of submissions from global, regional, and small media organizations,” the press release said. “From deeply reported investigations to innovative storytelling formats, the calibre of work continues to demonstrate the vital role journalism plays in informing and connecting our communities.”

Established in 1999, the SOPA Awards recognise editorial excellence in both new media and traditional journalism in the Asia-Pacific region. HKFP has won three prizes in previous years.

The winners will be announced on June 18 at the JW Marriott Hotel. Karen Hao – award-winning journalist and best-selling author of Empire of AI – will address the event.

HKFP’s award-winning reporting

Japan fired surface-to-ship missiles and sank an old warship in waters between the Philippines and Taiwan as part of major military exercises that include US forces, angering China.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has accelerated Japan’s shift towards a more muscular defence policy, further casting off — with US encouragement — Tokyo’s pacifist stance in place since the end of World War II.

The firing on Wednesday of two Type-88 missiles formed part of exercises in the Philippines between US, Australian, Filipino and Japanese troops as well as contingents from France, New Zealand and Canada.

Japanese and Philippine defence ministers observed the launch in the northern province of Ilocos Norte, some 400 kilometres (250 miles) from Taiwan, an AFP reporter at the scene said.

The two projectiles hit the target, a retired Philippines navy corvette, around 75 kilometres offshore in the South China Sea, causing it to sink, officials said.

The 19-day Balikatan exercises, meaning “shoulder-to-shoulder” and which wrap up Friday, have involved some 17,000 military personnel including Japanese combat troops for the first time.

Japan in recent years has moved to obtain “counterstrike” capabilities while hiking military spending and deepening security cooperation with regional allies including the Philippines.

Last month Takaichi’s government relaxed the country’s self-imposed rules to allow exports of lethal military hardware, seeking to grab a larger slice of the booming global market.

Last year Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries won a landmark order from the Australian navy — Takaichi was in Canberra this week — to supply 11 warships.

Missile drill angers China

Long-frosty China-Japan ties have worsened after Takaichi, seen as an arch-conservative and security hawk, suggested in November that Japan might intervene militarily in any Chinese attempt to take Taiwan.

China, which regards the democratic island as part of its territory and has not ruled out force to annex it, was furious over the comments, advising its citizens to avoid Japan and imposing trade restrictions.

On Wednesday Beijing lashed out at the missile test, calling it “another example of the Japanese right-wing forces’ push for accelerated remilitarisation of Japan.”

Foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told a regular briefing that “not only has Japan, the aggressor, failed to deeply reflect on its historical crimes, it has even sent military forces overseas and fired offensive missiles under the pretext of security cooperation.”

Yee Kuang Heng, a professor in international security at the University of Tokyo, said that the missile test to sink a ship was “particularly significant as island defence is a shared concern of both Japan and the Philippines.”

Another important component was the participation of Japan’s Amphibious Rapid Deployment Brigade (ARDB) in counter-landing drills with US, Philippine and Canadian forces, Heng added.

“Balikatan 2026 also saw the maiden deployment of Japan’s ShinMaywa US-2 amphibious aircraft for air-sea rescue and medical procedures, especially important given the long sea lanes in the region,” Heng told AFP.

Hong Kong lawmaker Judy Chan has received a written warning from the Legislative Council (LegCo) over her January traffic offence, the lowest-level sanction under a new code of conduct introduced earlier this year.

The Legislative Council Supervisory Committee submitted a report to LegCo on Wednesday detailing its investigation into a complaint relating to Chan’s driving.

The New People’s Party lawmaker was caught driving against traffic on Jaffe Road in Wan Chai on January 23. Four days later, the supervisory committee received a formal complaint from a member of the public.

In March, Chan was fined HK$2,000 and banned from driving for one month after pleading guilty to one count of careless driving.

“Taking into account all relevant factors, the Committee has unanimously
concluded that [Chan’s] misconduct did not reach a serious level,” the committee said in the report.

The committee therefore issued a written warning to the lawmaker, urging Chan to be “mindful of her words and deeds at all times and ensure that she lives up to the public’s expectations.”

Chan said on Facebook on Wednesday night that she accepted the committee’s decision. She also issued another apology.

“I will treat this as a lesson to remain vigilant, strive for continuous improvement, and do my utmost to serve the public,” Chan said in the Chinese-language post.

“I would like to express my sincere apologies to the public once again, especially to those who were disappointed or concerned by this incident.”

New code of conduct

In January, the LegCo introduced a new code of conduct for lawmakers that specifies requirements for meeting attendance, voting, and other duties.

It also introduced tougher penalties for misconduct under a five-tier sanctions system. The punishments for misconduct range from a written warning – the lowest-level sanctions – to suspension of duty and deduction of lawmakers’ remuneration and allowances.

The code ensures that lawmakers “perform their duties in a constructive manner” and do “not intentionally vilify the governance credibility” of authorities, according to the LegCo.

Misconduct complaints are handled by the newly created Legislative Council Supervisory Committee, which includes 13 lawmakers. The committee is an expansion of the former Committee on Members’ Interests.