“While the situation in Hong Kong is still unfolding, what we are seeing is a tragic reminder of how vulnerable high-rise buildings can be during renovation. External scaffolding, temporary coverings and the presence of highly combustible materials can dramatically accelerate fire spread, especially in densely populated towers. In any high-rise environment, safe evacuation becomes extremely difficult once a fire breaches multiple floors.

Events like this highlight the importance of strict oversight of construction materials, fire-resistant scaffolding systems, and maintenance of fire-safety pathways. Although Australia has different building systems and regulations, the principle is the same everywhere: when buildings age and undergo renovation, managing fire risk becomes particularly critical. This tragedy reminds us of the need for rigorous safety standards, proper inspection regimes, and strong enforcement to prevent similar disasters.”

“From a structural engineering standpoint, the bamboo scaffold acted as a continuous external fuel path. Dry culms have high surface-area-to-mass ratios and, when wrapped with plastic mesh, create a ventilated ‘chimney’ that supports rapid flame spread and radiant pre-heating of the next bay. The lattice continuity, closely spaced ledgers, and lashings provided uninterrupted heat bridges across floors and corners; once windows failed, the exterior fire coupled with interior contents, accelerating the event. This isn’t a craftsmanship issue but a materials-and-configuration problem: a combustible, porous frame placed against an occupied high-rise with few intentional breaks.

Prevention is straightforward in principle: eliminate the fuel or break the path. For occupied towers, mandate non-combustible temporary works (steel/aluminium) or, where bamboo is unavoidable, require pressure-impregnated fire-retardant culms, Class-A flame-retardant netting, and engineered discontinuities, vertical and horizontal fire-stops every few bays and at each floor line. Keep minimum clearances from openings; seal facade gaps at work stages; remove or fold netting during hot works; and provide temporary standpipes or water-mist lines on the scaffold with trained fire watches. Finally, require a stamped temporary-works design that treats the scaffold as a facade system subject to fire performance, not just gravity and wind. The science is simple: control fuel, ventilation, and continuity, and the risk collapses.”

"It’s time for change - to remove outdated practices and adopt modern methods of fire safety and protection. Bamboo scaffolding is highly flammable, and strict building regulations should be imposed to ban its use.

The fire spread from burning bamboo scaffolding is no different from the spread caused by the burning cladding of the Grenfell Tower in the UK in 2017. The situation is further exacerbated by the close proximity of buildings in Hong Kong, where wind-assisted flames can quickly engulf surrounding structures once a fire starts in a single building.

Mitigating this fire risk is feasible, as metal scaffolding has long been used in many countries and could readily be adopted. By eliminating the use of bamboo scaffolding, the risk of extensive building damage and human fatalities could be dramatically reduced."

"Obviously, this is a very significant incident, with several high-rise residential buildings on fire simultaneously. Whatever the root cause of the fire, there are reports of polystyrene over some of the windows as well as bamboo scaffolding and netting, which would have provided a direct route for fire spread on and around the buildings and contributed to building-to-building fire spread, significantly exacerbating the consequences.

There would have been many difficulties managing the incident, including challenges for the firefighters tackling the fire and carrying out any search and rescue activities, as well as difficulties for the occupants trying to evacuate. The fact that the fire spread to multiple floors and across multiple buildings at the same time will make all of this much worse. Given the intensity of the fires, there’s likely to be a significant amount of damage to the structure.

The overall human cost of this will be significant. It will take some time, maybe even years, before the full impact becomes clear. The incident highlights the fire safety risks of dense urban environments, including potential resourcing constraints on rescue services, information availability, challenges with managing incidents and evacuation of residents in high rise buildings."

"The cause of this fire is still unknown, but both negligence and deliberate ignition are factors which could be considered.  While our understanding of who sets deliberate fires and why is still developing, it is clear from the research that many motivations underpin this behaviour. For example, people report setting fires for excitement, boredom, anger or revenge, as part of antisocial or criminal activity, to send a powerful message to others, or as a coping mechanism if things are not going well in their lives.

People who set fires may present with a range of vulnerabilities including attitudes that support antisocial behaviour and/or fire setting, problems with communication and relationships, increased impulsivity, and difficulties with emotional regulation and expression. Some people who set fires may also have an interest in fire or fire paraphernalia (such as the fire service), whereas others have developed specific beliefs about how and when fire should be used (e.g. to destroy evidence, to cope with a difficult situation) which can influence their decision to set a fire in a particular circumstance.

While some people set fires to cause physical, emotional, or financial harm, not everyone who starts a deliberate fire intends to hurt others or cause significant damage. Fire is incredibly unpredictable and even if someone intends to light a small fire this can get out of control very quickly, creating a significant risk of harm to both those involved in setting the fire, emergency responders, and the wider community.

While we have made significant knowledge gains in the past 15 years, we still know relatively little about how to effectively prevent deliberate fire setting. This is because we know little about people’s pathways into fire setting, why some people repeatedly set fires, or why some people start setting fires in childhood and continue to do this into adulthood, while others desist.

If we are to meaningfully prevent deliberately set fires, we need to invest in research which can help identify when and where we can effectively intervene to reduce this harmful behaviour.”