The owners of flats in the two buildings most badly damaged in November's deadly blaze in Mong Kok have urged the government to restore their homes, as the final police cordons were removed from outside the buildings yesterday.
The city's deadliest fire in 15 years killed nine people and injured 34. Police initially suspected arson, but later said an electrical fault might be the cause.
About 15 owners of flats and shops at 192-194 and 196-198 Fa Yuen Street said the government should pay for repairs to their properties because they believed the fire was caused by authorities' poor management of stalls. They demanded a meeting with Secretary for Food and Health Dr York Chow Yat-ngok, whose bureau oversees the stalls.
Alex Ng, 50, the owner of a sixth-floor flat in block 192, said it was unfair that the government provided compensation to tenants but no help for owners. 'The government does not care about the owners. It just focuses on the needs of stall owners and residents. They treated us as if we are all dead,' he said.
The government has channelled the HK$2.4 million collected in donations from the community to help victims of the fire into renovating common areas in the damaged buildings. These include staircases, corridors and walls, but not doors and windows damaged during the rescue process.
Electricity and water have not yet been reconnected to the flats. Max Chan Yee, 45, the owner of a flat on the seventh floor of block 192, said the government was 'whitewashing the scene' by repairing only common areas so that stalls could resume business as soon as possible.
