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Authorities in Hong Kong have taken into custody thirteen people on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter in connection with the recent devastating fire, amidst growing criticism over the arrests of citizens demanding accountability.

Search Continues as Death Toll Climbs

Emergency services persisted in combing through the seven-building complex of the Wang Fuk Court estate in the Tai Po district on the start of the week, days after the city’s deadliest fire in seven and a half decades. The number of fatalities rose to one hundred and fifty-one and is expected to rise further as the search continues. About forty people are still unaccounted for.

Renovations Linked to Cause of Blaze

The housing complex, home to almost 5,000 people, had been undergoing extensive renovations that have been associated with the fire’s cause. In the wake of the tragedy, anger has grown over reported previous safety breaches by the contractor working at the site and poor oversight of standards, fuelled by disclosures that residents had been complaining about the renovations for a year.

Arrests Include Company Directors

On Monday afternoon, officials said the anti-graft agency had arrested 13 people over the disaster so far, including the directors and an engineering consultant of a construction company, and had “promptly initiated comprehensive investigation along the lines of manslaughter”.

Safety Failures Uncovered

A top administrator stated that seven of twenty tested samples of the scaffolding net used around the buildings did not meet fire-retardant standards. Preliminary checks had found materials were up to code, but the official said the less expensive, substandard netting had been put in areas difficult to access in order to avoid discovery, describing it as a “deplorable deed”.

“They just wanted to profit at the expense of human lives,” the official stated.

Citizens Detained Amid Calls for Accountability

As accusations of safety violations grow, alongside revelations that official bodies had issued several apparently ignored cautions, residents have asked why no officials have yet faced consequences. Conversely, two civilians were allegedly taken into custody by security forces.

One individual, identified as a Hong Kong student, was arrested over an online petition that made “four demands” for assured assistance for the affected families and responsibility for those at to blame, including any corrupt or responsible public servants.

Reports said the individual was arrested for “inciting disaffection”. Law enforcement did not confirm the detention, saying only that they “will take actions according to actual circumstances and in accordance with the legal framework”.

News outlets also reported the detention of a former district councillor.

Official Response on Arrests

Asked about the arrests, the security chief said there had been “inaccurate comments on the internet” that were aimed to undermine national security. “As a result, we must take appropriate measures, including law enforcement measures,” the official told a media briefing. “Operational details cannot be revealed as they involve state security.”

Social Media Response and Parallels Drawn

On Hong Kong social media, people criticised the detention of citizens. “National security must be given precedence even if the dead are still trapped in the structure,” said a comment.

Several users drew comparisons to the Chinese mainland. “The mainland, these crimes are called ‘picking quarrels and provoking trouble’,” said one commenter. “It’s usually punished with severe penalties. Social order overrides everything.”

Another said: “Since we are aligning with mainland China’s methods, by dealing with the person who asks questions, no one will venture to question, and therefore Hong Kong’s governance will have no problems.”

Increased Scrutiny and Community Response

The arrests came after advisories by national security authorities that they would crack down on anyone considered to be exploiting the incident to incite “hostile” sentiment.

Before the detentions, officials had already begun showing heightened sensitivity to the public reaction. Since the suppression of earlier unrest, civilian gatherings have been tightly controlled. In the immediate aftermath, volunteer supporters rapidly established aid operations, with hundreds of people employing cars and public transport to bring in large quantities of clothes, supplies and other essentials for the victims.

Nevertheless, by evening, armed police were patrolling the vicinity, and government officials eventually assumed control from the community coordinators.

The petition over which the individual was reportedly arrested was initiated late on Friday. Its “four points” echoed the language of past protest movements but did not call for political change.

The individual told reporters that he was only “proposing very basic requests”.

“If these ideas are deemed seditious or ‘transgressive’, then I believe I can’t predict the consequences of anything any more, and I can only do what I truly believe is correct,” he said.