Devastating Hong Kong Fire: The Heartbreaking Story Behind the Iconic Photograph of Grief and Loss

Wong arrived at the scene approximately one hour after the devastating Hong Kong building fire began.

Hong Kong:

On a serene autumn afternoon with clear blue skies and gentle breezes, Wong set out to collect his granddaughter from school.

The 71-year-old retiree and his spouse alternated the responsibility of walking to the school from their residential complex in Hong Kong's Tai Po district.

That particular Wednesday – the day when a catastrophic fire ravaged the Wang Fuk Court housing estate – it happened to be Wong's turn for the school run.

Shortly after departing from their apartment, Wong, who requested to be identified only by his surname, discovered that a fire had erupted in one of the towers within the complex.

When he returned, having left his granddaughter behind as he rushed back, flames were already engulfing the middle floors of the tower where he and his wife resided.

"My wife is inside," he cried out desperately, gesturing toward the flames consuming the apartment building.

One week following the tragedy, Wong's wife remains unaccounted for among the 30 individuals listed as missing. The death toll stands at least 156 people.

Wong's emotional anguish – arms raised in despair and weeping against the backdrop of what became Hong Kong's deadliest fire since 1948 – was immortalized in a powerful Reuters photograph.

Reuters photographer Tyrone Siu recounted seeing Wong by the roadside expressing frantic grief when he arrived approximately an hour after the fire began.

"It's a photograph that communicates everything immediately," Siu remarked. "Regardless of your global origin, you can empathize with Mr. Wong's feelings, the helplessness and the profound pain."

Wong's son spoke with Reuters while police officers in protective hazmat suits and helmets searched the buildings for victims. By Tuesday, there was still no information regarding his mother, Wong's wife.

J Wong, who like his father preferred not to disclose his full name, expressed his desire to share his family's ordeal as part of a healing process.

Authorities have identified substandard plastic mesh and insulation foam used during renovation work at the complex as factors in the rapid spread of the blaze across seven high-rise towers, home to more than 4,000 residents.

"On that initial day, naturally he couldn't accept the reality," Wong's son told Reuters. When his father observed the fire, he "knew internally" from the building's condition that his wife was lost.

At one point, Wong's wife had called him after the fire erupted, engaging in a brief conversation lasting approximately one minute, according to their son, who declined to provide details. "Shortly after that conversation, she disappeared."

Wong's son mentioned that his father, who had worked as a foreman in building maintenance before retiring and was a certified electrician and plumber, had expressed concerns about safety risks from the ongoing renovations on the building.

He had removed the styrofoam boards covering their windows and substituted them with fire-retardant plastic film. Additionally, he regularly moistened the green mesh outside their apartment by spraying water, the son explained.

"Despite recognizing the risks and taking precautions, he ultimately couldn't prevent what transpired," said the son.

That afternoon, following the capturing of the photograph, Wong senior stood watching the horrific scene unfold, at one point collapsing onto the pavement. As darkness descended, a police officer provided him with a blue plastic stool.

"I will come find you," he whispered at one moment, gazing upward toward his home and addressing his wife.

(Reporting by James Pomfret, Nicoco Chan and Tyrone Siu; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)