Sylvie Claire / March 4, 2023

A major fire on Thursday night ravaged a skyscraper under construction in the tourist heart of Hong Kong, with authorities saying Friday morning that the fire was “largely extinguished. »

Blackened concrete walls and remnants of scaffolding were visible in the morning, while municipal employees were removing debris from the road, an AFP reporter noted on site.

Authorities said the fire in Tsim Sha Tsui, a busy commercial and tourist district on the waterfront, was “largely extinguished” at 8:30 a.m. local time Friday, nine hours after it broke out.

No casualties were reported, the government said, with police telling AFP that 170 residents had been safely relocated.

The fire broke out at 23:11, with flames first seen near a scaffold on top of the building. The blaze was visible from the harbor and sent spray into the surrounding streets.

An hour later, the fire spread to the entire building under construction and down to the street, where hundreds of onlookers had gathered.

Police said five buildings in the area reported fires, some of which were quickly extinguished.

The 42-story building under construction was to house a hotel and the historic Mariners’ Club, according to the website of its developer, the Empire Group.

The construction site estimated at 764 million dollars had been launched in 2019 and was initially to be completed in the first quarter of 2023, according to local media. Solicited by AFP, the Empire Group had not responded immediately.