About 70 residents were rescued by firefighters after being trapped in a public housing block in Pok Fu Lam when a fourth-floor flat was engulfed in flames yesterday, injuring nine people.
Three men and five women, all residents, suffered burns or smoke inhalation, while a fireman had minor hand injuries. One of those injured was a tenant of the fourth-floor flat in Wah Kin House on the Wah Fu Estate where the fire broke out at about 4.30am.
The 70-year-old woman suffered burns to her upper body after she fled the flames then ran back inside to save some belongings.
Five people remained in Queen Mary Hospital in stable condition. The others were discharged after treatment.
A burning mosquito repellent coil that ignited waste cardboard stacked in the flat was the suspected cause of the blaze, Fire Services Department Western divisional commander Tse Ping-ho said.
'The tenant [of the burnt-out flat] told us that a mosquito coil was set alight before she went to bed,' he said.
Tse said the flat was well alight when firemen arrived and many residents were trapped and called police for help.