Survivors of the deadly Tai Po fire will be allowed to go in and out of their homes multiple times within their designated three-hour slot, a top government official has said, adding that journalists will not be permitted to tag along. Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration Warner Cheuk Wing-hing meets the press on October 26, 2023. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP.

Deputy Chief Secretary for Administration Warner Cheuk made the comments on Sunday, a day before fire victims are set to go back to Wang Fuk Court to collect their belongings. Earlier, authorities had said that residents would only be able to enter their homes once, prompting criticism that the arrangement lacked flexibility. On Monday, residents of Wang Sun House, one of the estate’s seven fire-ravaged block, will go back to retrieve their belongings for the first time since the November fire.

Residents of the other buildings will do so in later batches until May 4. In an interview with RTHK on Sunday, Cheuk said that “generally speaking,” residents will be allowed to enter their homes more than once to make it more convenient for them to take their belongings. He said the decision was made after inter-departmental discussions following residents’ feedback.

Wang Fuk Court in Tai Po, pictured on November 29, 2025, in the aftermath of the fatal blaze. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. Cheuk said all residents will be “accompanied” by police or Civil Aid Service officers while returning to their homes, citing a need to protect their neighbours’ property.

Residents should not enter others’ units nor take photos of other apartments, Cheuk added. The official said around 6,000 people had registered with the government to make trips to their homes. A total of 47 households chose not to return after seeing pictures of their charred apartments taken by authorities.

The coming weeks will be the first time that fire victims will return to their homes since the blaze broke out in late November. The fire, the deadliest in Hong Kong since 1948, claimed 168 lives and displaced thousands of residents. It was not until late March that authorities announced arrangements for them to return.

They said each household would be given a maximum of three hours to gather their items, with a maximum of four people. Some residents said three hours was too little time for them to pack and bid farewell to their homes. Cheuk then defended the time limit on a Commercial Radio programme.

Black ribbons hang on railings near Wang Fuk Court on January 30, 2026, two months after a deadly fire. Photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. “With four people and three hours allowed, they would have 12 hours in total to pack,” Cheuk said in Cantonese.

The remark draw widespread criticism online. Days after, Cheuk said authorities would be flexible and allow residents to book more than one three-hour time slot to return to their homes. Journalists barred Cheuk said on Sunday that authorities will not allow journalists to tag along with residents to their fire-ravaged homes.

He said some residents reported to the government that journalists wanted to go with them to their flats. “[The residents] said going up to their homes will be a difficult and sad moment… therefore, they hope not to be disturbed and to enjoy privacy when they pack things,” Cheuk said. “We will not allow [reporters] to go upstairs,” he added.