第2888期: A massive fire rips through Hong Kong housing estate

Authorities in Hong Kong say the number of people killed in an apartment fire last week has now risen to 151. This as an investigation is pointing to the building's renovation as a catalyst for the tragedy. We're showing you here images released today by the Hong Kong police force showing the interior of an apartment that was destroyed in the fire, giving you a sense of the damage caused by the flames inside with walls blackened, floor to ceiling, and a lifetime of memories reduced to ash.

香港当局表示，上周发生的一场公寓火灾的死亡人数现已上升至151人。调查显示，这场悲剧的导火索可能与大楼正在进行的翻修工程有关。我们现在展示的是香港警方今天发布的画面，画面显示了一套在火灾中被彻底烧毁的公寓内部景象，让人直观感受到火焰造成的破坏——墙壁从地板到天花板一片焦黑，一生的记忆化为灰烬。

Mary-Anne Demayne joining me now. She's been following this story all morning for us. Those images, Mary-Anne, are just unbelievable, devastating, but really speak to the intensity of this fire.

玛丽安·德梅恩现在加入我们。她整个上午都在为我们跟进这条新闻。玛丽安，这些画面令人难以置信、令人心碎，也真实反映了这场火灾的猛烈程度。

And now, of course, the investigation looking into everything in terms of overall what happened, but I guess now what needs to be done to keep these buildings or other apartment buildings safe.

当然，目前调查正在全面审视事情的来龙去脉，同时也在思考接下来该采取什么措施，才能确保这些大楼以及其他公寓建筑的安全。

Yeah, that is the focus of the investigation. Why did these 7 31-story towers go up in flames so quickly, leaving all of that destruction and all of that death in its wake? So they're looking at the materials from the renovation that was underway at these buildings, and according to investigators, all signs point to the nylon meshing there, that green, that's what's left of it anyway, that was surrounding the bamboo scaffolding outside of these buildings, they say did not meet flame retardant standards.

是的，这正是调查的重点。为什么这七栋31层高的住宅楼会如此迅速地陷入火海，留下如此严重的破坏和大量人员死亡？因此，调查人员正在检查这些大楼翻修过程中所使用的材料。根据调查结果，所有迹象都指向包裹在大楼外部竹制脚手架上的尼龙防护网——也就是你看到的那种绿色材料，至少这是它残留的部分——这些材料并不符合阻燃标准。

In other words, it was not up to the fire safety code, and that's why they say this flame spread so quickly and engulfed these buildings so quickly. On top of that, the renovation was using these foam blocks that they say was blocking the windows. These also led to the fire spreading very quickly outside of this building, led to the glass exploding in the windows, and that helped spread the fire inside the buildings, leading to the images you saw just a few moments ago, those burnt-out units.

换句话说，这些材料并不符合消防安全规范，这也是火势迅速蔓延并吞噬整栋大楼的原因之一。除此之外，翻修工程中还使用了泡沫块，这些材料被认为堵住了窗户。这不仅加快了火势在建筑外部的蔓延，还导致窗户玻璃爆裂，从而助长了火焰向建筑内部扩散，最终造成了你刚才看到的那些被烧毁的住宅单元。

Now, as a result of this investigation, they've also uncovered that the detectors inside of these buildings weren't working. Many of them anyway may not have alerted these residents, many who were over the age of 65, so when you imagine the chaos and the panic that was happening inside these buildings as the flames were just spreading from building to building, it is quite a horrific scene. Now, looking at this investigation, it has also turned criminal.

此外，调查还发现，这些大楼内部的火灾探测器并未正常工作。至少有相当一部分并没有向居民发出警报，而这些居民中，许多人都已超过65岁。可以想象，当火焰在楼与楼之间迅速蔓延时，楼内所发生的混乱与恐慌是多么骇人。随着调查的深入，这起事件也已转为刑事案件。

We know that at least 13 people have now been arrested. These are people in connection to the construction company, Prestige Construction and Engineering Company. We're talking people who were scaffolding subcontractors, even engineers, project managers.

我们了解到，目前至少已有13人被逮捕，他们都与承建公司——尊贵建筑与工程公司（Prestige Construction and Engineering Company）有关，包括脚手架分包商、工程师，甚至项目经理。

They've all been arrested in connection with suspected manslaughter. That's one part of the investigation. They've also suspended 28 projects on area businesses there in Hong Kong connected to this same construction and engineering company.

这些人因涉嫌过失杀人而被拘捕，这是调查的一部分内容。同时，当局还暂停了香港地区与这家建筑工程公司有关的28个项目。

They're trying to do safety audits to, of course, prevent something like this from happening, but looking at these images, Angie, you can see the big job they have ahead of them. These are buildings that have been around since the 1980s. There are thousands of units here, so a huge impact and a huge job ahead.

他们正在进行安全审查，目的当然是防止类似事件再次发生。但安琪，从这些画面中你也能看出，他们面前的任务非常艰巨。这些建筑始建于上世纪80年代，里面有成千上万套住房，因此影响巨大，后续工作量也极为庞大。

And it'll be interesting to see as they've expanded that investigation, will it need to be expanded further to the overall construction industry in terms of how that all entails. A very complex recovery effort is underway for the victims. 151 bodies.

随着调查的扩大，人们也在关注，是否有必要将调查进一步延伸到整个建筑行业。这对受害者而言，是一项极其复杂的善后与恢复工作。目前已有151具遗体被发现。

That number could potentially rise as they try to find more people that were trapped inside those buildings.

随着搜寻更多被困在楼内的人员，这个数字还有可能继续上升。

Yeah, because despite all of the damage you see on the outside and the inside, the building itself is still very structurally sound. So they are going unit by unit and they are uncovering more bodies, not only inside those units, but also in the stairwells, the hallways and even the roof.

是的，因为尽管建筑内外遭受了严重破坏，但整体结构依然相当稳固。因此，搜救人员正逐户逐层展开搜索，陆续发现更多遗体，不仅在住宅单元内，还包括楼梯间、走廊，甚至屋顶。

But because these buildings were burning for days until the fire was completely put out, the fear is that not only will the death toll go up, but that they may not even be able to find or identify some of the victims because of just how burned the inside of those units are.

然而，由于这些建筑持续燃烧了好几天才被完全扑灭，人们担心的不只是死亡人数会继续上升，还有可能因为内部烧毁程度过于严重，而无法找到或确认部分遇难者的身份。

So there are missing people, dozens of them, either way, all in the minds and hearts of those who are mourning this tragedy there in Hong Kong. We saw the lineups that spanned several kilometers long with people lining up to pay their respects.

因此，目前仍有数十人失踪。无论结果如何，这一切都牵动着香港无数悼念者的心。我们看到，前来悼念的人群排起了绵延数公里的长队。

In addition though, to those who died in this fire and those who are still missing, there are those who are still displaced. 4,600 people or so now without homes and all of them now trying to find temporary shelter while that investigation continues.

此外，除了遇难者和失踪者之外，还有大量流离失所的居民。大约4600人如今无家可归，在调查持续进行的同时，他们都在努力寻找临时住所。

Indeed, and also push from the family members for a full inquiry into what has happened here.

确实如此，遇难者家属也在强烈要求对事件展开全面调查。

And as you mentioned, there are hundreds of them gathering to pay their respects. A devastating situation. Appreciate all the updates you've been giving us all morning, Mary-Anne.

正如你所提到的，数百人聚集在一起表达哀悼，这是一个令人痛心的局面。感谢你整个上午为我们带来的最新消息，玛丽安。

Thank you for this. You're welcome.

谢谢你的报道。 不客气。