FLASH
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Latest images show smoke rising from tower blocks as fire crews battle the flames...
At least 55 people have died in a massive fire that engulfed a public housing complex in Hong Kong.
Firefighters continue to battle the flames, while hundreds of people are reported missing.
The fire engulfed seven of the eight apartment buildings in the Tai Po district. The fires are under control in four of them and officials hope to extinguish the remaining ones by evening.
According to the latest census figures, Wang Fuk Court is home to about 4,600 residents. It is not clear how many people were inside when the fire broke out.
As the fires subside, questions are returning about how the flames first started and who should be held responsible.
Three executives of a construction company have been arrested on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter.
As night falls in Hong Kong, rescue efforts continue. Latest images show smoke rising from tower blocks as fire crews battle the flames.
Albert Lai, a retired resident, tells AFP that police knocked on his door shortly after the fire broke out, telling them to close all windows and doors and leave.
"I would be lying if I said I managed to sleep, it was an unfamiliar place and very noisy," he says, adding that he spent the night on the floor of a shopping mall.
Daisy Yan, 60, was evacuated after living in a building near Wang Fuk Court. Some of her friends who live in the area are uncontactable, she told Reuters.
"I don't know if I can go home tonight," she says.
Many of those affected by the fire have been taken to nearby emergency shelters.
As we previously reported, it is unclear how many people were actually in Wang Fuk when the fire broke out.
According to a 2021 government census, the complex is home to about 4,600 residents.
The fire broke out at Wang Fuk Court, a large public housing complex in the Tai Po district, at 2:51 p.m. local time on Wednesday (06:51 GMT).
The complex, which was built in 1983, consists of eight towers, each 31 stories high, with seven of them initially affected by the fire.
The complex has 1,984 apartments and is home to about 4,600 residents, according to a 2021 government census. It is not clear how many people were actually in the complex when the fire broke out.
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