The families of five Hongkongers killed in Saturday night's fire at an illegal Shenzhen nightclub were offered 250,000 yuan (HK$285,000) compensation each after meeting authorities yesterday, but relatives said this was well below their expectations. The Shenzhen government will handle claims and pay compensation for the deaths at the Wuwang (Dance King) club because it operated without a proper licence or third-party insurance. The offer came as one more person died from injuries sustained in the blaze, taking the death toll to 44, with 51 people, including two from Hong Kong, still in hospital. The Hong Kong immigration department said yesterday one more resident from the city had been admitted to hospital with injuries suffered in the fire. A Hong Kong union helping the families of victims said negotiations over compensation could last some time given the wide gap between the families' expectations and the amount offered. Relatives said they had consulted legal experts, and believed a reasonable level of compensation would be between 500,000 and 600,000 yuan each. 'They expected compensation equal to 20 times the average annual income of a Shenzhen worker, which was some 25,000 yuan according to last year's statistics,' said Huang Yanzong, secretary of the Federation of Trade Unions' office in Shenzhen. Mr Huang said estimates for the maximum compensation for the Hong Kong families in Shenzhen were about 530,000 yuan. Insurers had described this as 'unprecedented'. He said the authorities' offer to the Hong Kong families yesterday was the same as for the mainland victims. The union said a new round of negotiations could start as soon as tomorrow after Typhoon Hagupit passed over Hong Kong and Guangdong today. The federation's Shenzhen office chairwoman, Zhu Ke, said the families needed time to digest the offer and would probably decide to submit the amount they expected to receive after a group discussion. Amid rain and gales from the approaching typhoon, dozens of Hong Kong relatives went to the nightclub yesterday to burn offerings in memory of the victims. The State Council set up a special investigation team led by Liang Jiakun , deputy director of the State Administration of Work Safety, to investigate the fire. Mr Liang said the team would suggest punishments, including party discipline and criminal charges, for those responsible. The State Council's safety committee has banned all pyrotechnic displays in public entertainment venues after fireworks set the nightclub's ceiling ablaze. Forty-two of the 44 who died have been identified. However, only seven Shenzhen officials have been punished for the blaze so far. Shenzhen party chief Liu Yupu said in a self-criticism that the fire was a 'profound lesson', comments similar to those he voiced following a fire six months ago in Nanshan district that killed 15 people.
