• Residents of Wang Fuk Court were misinformed about the contractor's safety record prior to a deadly fire.
• Prestige Construction was found to have multiple infractions before being awarded a major renovation contract.
• The fire, which killed at least 159 people, has triggered manslaughter and corruption investigations.

In a devastating incident, homeowners at Wang Fuk Court in Hong Kong were misled about the safety record of Prestige Construction & Engineering, the contractor responsible for a renovation that preceded the city's deadliest fire. Documents revealed that residents were assured by Will Power Architects that Prestige maintained a clean record with no prosecutions from the Labour Department. In reality, records show that Prestige had been penalized more than a dozen times for safety violations—including improperly installed scaffolding and faulty electrical connections—between 2016 and 2019, casting doubt on the assurances given to residents, who were informed erroneously about the contractor's safety standing, according to Reuters and Channel News Asia.

The HK$330 million renovation contract was awarded to Prestige following a high evaluation score from Will Power, despite its problematic history. After the fire on November 26, which has claimed at least 159 lives, both Will Power and Prestige are now subjects of manslaughter and corruption investigations. Authorities indicated that fire-safety standards were breached due to substandard mesh used for building scaffolding and flammable materials around windows. Previously, the Labour Department had assured concerned residents that the materials used were certified as safe, yet investigations now questions this assertion, highlighting a serious lapse in safety management, as reported by India Times.

Wang Fuk Court, constructed in the 1980s, housed approximately 2,000 small apartments, predominantly occupied by blue-collar workers and senior citizens. Early signs of renovation issues arose as costs escalated beyond initial estimates, raising alarm among residents. Many expressed concerns around the safety conditions on-site, including issues related to workers smoking and the use of flammable materials. An aborted effort was made to revoke Prestige's contract as complaints about the renovation project grew, leading to a contentious meeting on September 6, 2024, where a new homeowners' board was eventually elected, according to accounts from Reuters and Channel News Asia.

Post-election, the new board sought to independently assess safety risks associated with the ongoing renovation efforts and mobilized community members with construction experience to monitor the situation closely. Residents took drastic measures, including one homeowner removing flammable foam boards from his windows in a desperate attempt to safeguard his home. Despite knowing the risks and taking steps to mitigate them, he expressed that these efforts ultimately could not change the tragic outcome of the fire, according to India Times.