Owners of Wang Fuk Court flats affected by the fatal fire will receive a HK$100,000 payment from authorities, a senior Hong Kong government official has said.
Deputy Chief Secretary Warner Cheuk announced at a Wednesday press conference the one-off payment from the government’s relief fund, the Support Fund for Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, which has grown to HK$3.4 billion.
Cheuk said the existing support measures are mainly for residents, most of whom are renters.
“Some owners relied on income from renting out their flats to cover their daily expenses, but they have lost this source of income because of the fire,” he said.
The HK$100,000 payment would also ease the burden on owners who may have paid for renovations or repairs, added Cheuk, who leads the steering committee for the government’s relief fund.
Cheuk made the announcement two weeks after the blaze at Wang Fuk Court, a government-subsidised housing estate in Tai Po, broke out on November 26, killing at least 160 people and displacing about 2,000 families. Six people are still unaccounted for.
Tax deductions for donors
Cheuk also said Hong Kong residents contributing to the government’s relief fund would be entitled to tax deductions should they provide transaction records.
The government set up the Tai Po relief fund on November 27, with an initial injection of HK$300 million.
Of the HK$3.1 billion donated by the public so far, 257,000 donations were below HK$10,000, while 170 exceeded HK$5 million.
The deputy chief secretary also said on Wednesday that 106 bereaved families had received HK$200,000 in condolence money and HK$50,000 to cover funeral costs, while 1,617 affected households had each received a HK$100,000 living allowance.
Sixty-four people injured in the fire have received assistance ranging between HK$50,000 and HK$100,000. Meanwhile, 63 foreign domestic helpers, 220 students, and 110 construction workers have each received a HK$20,000 relief subsidy.
The relief measures pledged by the government amount to about HK$460 million, with about HK$2.8 billion remaining in the fund.
Should residents’ additional needs arise in the future, further support measures will be considered, Cheuk added.
He did not say whether Wang Fuk Court would be redeveloped but told journalists that the government would consider allocating remaining funds for displaced residents’ resettlement needs in the medium to long term.
The fund’s steering committee also includes the heads of the housing, education, labour and welfare, and health bureaus. It will submit its plans to the Audit Commission and the Legislative Council for scrutiny.
Separately, police said on Wednesday they had arrested a 36-year-old man for using a false identity to defraud the government and charities of HK$18,000 in emergency relief funding.
He will be charged with one count of fraud, two counts of obtaining property by deception, and one count of attempting to obtain property by deception.
