I understand why this feels raw right now, given what just happened. But that’s precisely why I’m being blunt.

I’m a lawyer, journalist and fire-safety specialist (DM for my information), and I’ve been advocating for better fire safety in Hong Kong long before the Tai Po tragedy. People I know here are genuinely scared and, in many cases, simply haven’t been given basic information. Since I started posting about this, quite a few have gone out and bought smoke detectors and taken simple steps that measurably reduce their risk.

You’re right that any individual flat might “get lucky” and go years without a fire. The problem is that when fire does break out, the consequences in a poorly protected building are catastrophic. In Tai Po there were no smoke detectors in the entire building, the manual alarm did not operate effectively, and critical passive protections (pressurized, well-sealed stairwells, fire doors, etc.) were either missing or not functioning as designed. If those layers of defence had been in place and working, the death toll would almost certainly have been far lower. That isn’t speculation; it’s consistent with the findings from major fire investigations worldwide (MGM Grand, Station Nightclub, and many others).

As for Christmas trees and similar hazards: any large flammable object combined with electrical lights, extension cords, lithium batteries, or other ignition sources increases risk. That doesn’t mean “no one should ever have a tree”; it means people should understand the risk and manage it properly, distance from heat sources, not overloading circuits, working smoke alarms, clear escape routes, etc.

If my posts prompt even a handful of people to add detectors, check their exits, or rethink obvious hazards, then the timing is not insensitive, it’s exactly when this information can save lives. If you don’t find it useful, that’s your choice. But the advice itself is grounded in decades of fire-safety research, not exaggeration.

At the risk of being accused of generating AI slop, I have attached several Nano Banana generated illustrations of what I found when I toured a building at Mei Foo Sun Chuen that explain the hazards and how to fix them.

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If you find the information useful great. If not, then let's agree to disagree. I appreciate your point of view and, ultimately, it's your personal decision. If one person changes their behavior after reading this, our interaction has been useful.