Overview
- URA officials, who testified Thursday at the inquiry’s 21st hearing, said the authority lacks the staff and tools to stop bid‑rigging and would not overrule homeowners even when bids look suspect.
- The Buildings Department told the panel it relied on contractor certificates to judge the fire resistance of scaffolding mesh with no routine checks or tests, and it said subsidised estates like Wang Fuk Court fall under a separate unit.
- A URA‑commissioned review put an exterior overhaul near HK$102 million, yet the estate proceeded with a HK$336 million package that went to Prestige Construction, the highest of 57 bidders, whose 140 safety convictions were left out of an evaluation now under criminal scrutiny.
- Investigators say flammable polyfoam on windows and substandard green mesh helped the blaze race through seven blocks as fire alarms in all eight towers failed, prompting a new fire‑case referral system and proposed tougher penalties.
- The judge‑led probe, expected to finish around September, resumes May 6–8, while a buyout plan is being extended to the one block not burned if 75 percent of owners agree, offering displaced families a clearer path to move on.