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Connect the World

At Least 13 Dead in Hong Kong High-Rise Apartment Fire; Trump Walks Back Deadline for a Ukraine Peace Deal; FBI Seeks Interviews with Six Lawmakers Trump Called "Seditious"; Pentagon Opens Review into Kelly's Role in "Illegal Orders" Video; Israel Identifies Hostage Body Returned from Gaza. Aired 9-10a ET

Aired November 26, 2025 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: And we do start with the breaking news out of Hong Kong, where authorities say at least 13 people

are dead and others fear trapped as a huge fire rage through several high- rise apartment towers. Police say at least three people are in hospital, with two of them in critical condition.

A firefighter is among those killed. That's according to local media there. Now it's thought the flames spread along bamboo scaffolding that had been

set up outside the 31 story towers. Now the complex is home to 2000 residential apartments. You can imagine that means thousands of people

called these high rises home.

The Hong Kong Fire Department has just given an update. We want to listen now to their Deputy Director, Derek Armstrong Chan. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEREK ARMSTRONG CHAN, DEPUTY DIRECTOR OF HONG KONG FIRE DEPARTMENT: We encounter particular difficulties in several areas, like the fire is

spreading quickly to nearby buildings, and we receive numerous assistance call from the public, and also debris and scavenging of the fatted

buildings falling down.

So, pose additional danger to our front-line personnel, besides, the temperature inside the buildings concerned are very high. So, it's quite

difficult for us to enter the building and go upstairs to conduct a fire fighting and rescue operation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: CNN's Ivan Watson is live for us on the scene. Ivan, extraordinary, what the deputy director was telling us there, and just saying that the

fire is so intense, the temperature is so high that, that explains why they're having a very difficult time to try and enter this building.

And beyond that, having the falling bamboo and pictures that you know will show you the embers, the remnants of this fire literally peeling off the

building. Clearly, a very dangerous situation.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, very dangerous. It has claimed the life of one fireman with nine years of

experience who commanded one of these scores of fire trucks that are on the scene right now. That was in the first hours of this inferno and has

injured at least one other fireman.

That same official is quoted separately in Cantonese saying warning people that are still trapped in their homes that the best thing to do is to close

all the doors and windows, seal them up with tape and wet napkins, and call and tell your unit number, and then they're going to try to get to those

people to rescue them.

But I have to say, certainly. I mean, according to the authorities, at least seven of these eight towers, Paula, is on fire. And I cannot imagine

any way possible to reach upper floors of this tower directly in front of me that Dan is filming right now that has two hoses spraying it right now,

but they're only reaching perhaps 9, 10, stories up.

And the tower is easily twice as high. This flame, the fire department says they first, and we can see more debris falling off the kind of netting,

construction netting and bamboo scaffolding that was encircling all of these towers when the fire first began. The authorities say they got a call

for about a fire shortly before 03:00 p.m.

And by the time they reached the scene, the fire had spread into a tower and was spreading into the bamboo scaffolding that is so commonly used for

construction here in Hong Kong of high rises, and to the construction netting. And then within hours, it had spread from one tower to six other

towers in this public housing development that is home to more than 4000 residents.

So, judging by what I'm seeing right now, thousands of people have been made homeless in the last couple of hours. In addition to that, this fire

has claimed the lives of at least 13 people, including a fireman, and has injured dozens more, including another fireman, and as we heard from that

officer, it is dangerous work for the emergency workers.

As you can see, there's some kidding up right here. This man, apparently, he has an oxygen tank on.

[09:05:00]

They're getting ready to do work further in the area, and I can only -- I don't even want to imagine what it might be like if anybody is, in fact,

trapped in one of these towers. This is a very common housing development for Hong Kong. This estate itself was constructed in 1983.

This is a very densely populated city with very little ground to build on. In this city, you build up so many people live in skyscrapers here, in high

rises. They work in them as well. So, this for me as a longtime resident here with a family, this is a nightmare, a worst-case scenario to imagine

something like this happening, and there is no sign of any end in sight right now to this inferno, Paula.

NEWTON: Yeah, indeed, it is. Ivan, as we continue to take in the scene. You know, what strikes me is we've been on the air with you for more than an

hour now. From the pictures you guys are showing us, it doesn't seem as if this has been brought under control at all, and you see from the deputy

director there telling us that this fire continues in its intensity.

I am wondering what more you're learning about. Were there any family reunifications? Have they developed a staging area? Because at this point

in time, what's truly chilling is that they're telling people that are trapped inside, seal your windows and put wet towels along the windows.

It would seem to me, this is an incredibly desperate measure, which means they cannot escape down the stairwell.

WATSON: Yeah, in these types of buildings, the fire escape is internal, right? So, I have that, for example, in my building, and you don't climb

exterior fire escapes. You go down internal stairwells that are designed not to have anything flammable in them. And I don't know, with the speed

that this fire spread, if people were able, if everybody was able, to get out.

You have children, you have the elderly who were living here. A large percentage of the residents, according to public information, were over the

age of 65. So, you have potential vulnerable people and let us hope and pray that they were able to get out.

We do know that there is a shelter on the other side of this development that's been cordoned off by police that would presumably be helping some of

the thousands of people who have been made homeless now by this fire, which again broke out, you know, some eight hours ago, and shows no end in sight.

There was, for context, another fire last month in the central business district of Hong Kong, involving a building that also had bamboo

scaffolding on it. No reports of deaths as a result of that. At this point, with 13 people killed, this is one of the deadliest fires in Hong Kong's

living history right now.

And people there will certainly be people very concerned about the potential scenario of loved ones who could have been trapped inside as the

fire spread from one tower to another to engulf seven out of eight towers in this public housing block, and we're just watching debris raining down

from one of these.

And there are, you know, ladders with fire hoses blasting. And it's very well possible that on the other side of the estate that I can't see from

here, that there could be other rescue crews operating on that side. The other side of this would be the sea side. So, if there's a blessing here,

it's that no buildings on the other side that this could spread to and easy access to water on that side as part of the rescue efforts.

But certainly, in my 10 years living in the city, this is the worst and deadliest fire that I've ever witnessed here, Paula.

NEWTON: Yeah, truly terrifying for the residents there and so many watching on right now. I mean, Ivan, you did give us the update, and you showed us

that firefighters are suiting up, perhaps ready to try and find a point of entry to really try and dampen this fire, because right now, from what we

can see, it remains out of control.

Ivan will continue to check in with you over the next few hours as we continue to watch the scene there in Hong Kong. Right now, I want to bring

in Stephen Mackenzie. He's an independent fire and emergency planning consultant, and he joins us now. Stephen, I just want to get your first

impressions as you watch this.

There has been so much video, including, as Ivan just said, you continue to see debris on fire, literally just peeling off the buildings here.

[09:10:00]

STEPHEN MACKENZIE, INDEPENDENT FIRE AND EMERGENCY PLANNING CONSULTANT: Unfortunately, in the Asia area, they do use bamboo extensively for

external scaffolding. A bamboo is it's got a degree of flame retardants, but once you get a fully developed fire, it just starts watering and going

there is fire phenomenon, such as a chimney effect.

And there might be one driven element, given the high rise and local atmospheric elements, which actually are just driving the fire, and then

the scaffolding would just actually lose its structural integrity and showering down on surrounding buildings and responding emergency services

the -- debris.

It is astonishing that we don't have any fire breaks and that seven out of the eight blocks have been affected. And we've been warning since 2020,

2017 that we're expecting green fair to somewhere in the world, and now we have it a major life loss event with over 14 -- 13, fatalities we know of,

and that unfortunate death count may rise as emergency services proceeds.

NEWTON: Yeah, and we certainly hope for the best there, because this has been burning for several hours. I do want to return to that point that you

make, and just to remind our viewers that is the Grenfell Tower fire that happened in 2017 an absolute devastating event there in London where more

than 70 people lost their lives.

And the video that we saw from there also involved the cladding around the building, which seemed to really go up in flames very, very quickly here,

as you see this fire unfold here in Hong Kong, what would you say about that in terms of its similarities to Grenfell and what needs to happen?

Because, let's face it, many buildings around the world are clad in scaffolding at this hour, undergoing repairs and renovations.

MACKENZIE: Yeah. But outside Asia, the majority for scaffolding is particularly in the western world is heavily controlled. We generally use

steel or aluminum elements in the UK, following on a number of high- profile, high-rise fires in the London area. We're trying to encourage clients to move from timber based decking materials into aluminum materials

and also be very careful in the selection of fires retardant netting or scaffold coverings.

However, in Asia, the bamboo is a locally sourced, cheap, sustainable material, but ultimately, it's combustible. Therefore, when you get a fully

developed fire, it will lose its integrity. The fire load as it spreads up to the building, will adhere to the building, be drawn into the building

using a chimney effect, or the -- effect.

And therefore, the fire will then accelerate, and then, if we get any high winds in the area, it will then give a wind driven effect, which can have

potentially lethal consequences that we see. And also, ultimately, with the showering debris, they project 1.5 times that the building height impacts

on as we see in all high-rise fire, emergency services, response and operations.

We did inform the Grenfell inquiry chair in 2017 to put the United Nations on notice to see we will have other high rise out there with other fire

phenomenon and other dangers and hazards and risks that we haven't yet identified, and therefore, please put them on notice formally, so that the

international community can start looking at high rise safety.

And there's been a huge body of work done since then, but there is no central, international reporting mechanism, and it's a lot of independent

consultants like myself trying to champion public policy or an influence government or trying to keep residents safe at home. And then we get these

big, large events, which leads to a public inquiry, or a Coroner's Court inquiry, and then a change in legislation again.

NEWTON: Right. And the task -- but the task that you outline right there, immense, really. Stephen, I want to ask you, as we continue to take in

these pictures and the fact that the fire clearly is not under control at this hour, what are firefighters trying to do now?

As they continue, they've got so many units on the scene, you can see that they are directing as many fire hoses as they can at the building, and yet,

Ivan Watson just showed us that, in fact, the firefighters are suiting up. I mean, they've explained how dangerous it is right now.

You've got flying debris on fire, you've got intense temperatures. What are they trying to do to finally bring this fire under control right now?

MACKENZIE: They're trying to do two predominant things. One is to gear up the weight of response to the fire. And we use different levels, bronze,

silver and gold command, and we can draw upon the entire area fire response and draw a neighboring firefighter to put a weight response on.

[09:15:00]

These are quite well-practiced after -- Grenfell, the fire thing community picked up those lessons learned very, very quickly. They're trying to do

two things. One is to get and control the external fire spread within the building of origin and to neighboring buildings and also penetrate the

blocks.

I must pause. We just shouldn't see this after Grenfell, after the extensive public inquiry, we should not see far spread from a block to a

block to a block and an occupied premises. This is tantamount to gross negligence. It should not happen. It flies in the face of the entire

premise of fire and life safety legislation.

The firefighters were desperately trying to contain the fire and to enter to rescue any persons within the building. And we expect, unfortunately,

we're going to move from a fire containment process to search and rescues and then persons recovery. This is an absolute devastating fire, and I just

cannot believe what we're seeing.

It should not happen with modern building legislation, and after all the legislation, after the Grenfell Tower fire, I'm stunned.

NEWTON: And we note your sobering comments there about how bewildered you are that this should be happening at this hour. Stephen Mackenzie, I want

to thank you. We've certainly learned a lot, and we continue to hope that those firefighters on the scene will be able to put this out in the coming

hours.

Appreciate it. And stay with CNN. We'll be right back with more news after a break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEWTON: And welcome back. Now, I want to let you know that we continue to fire to cover the fire in central Hong Kong right now just a terrifying

scene when seven of eight high rise towers continue to be completely engulfed in flames. Firefighters are having a hard time reaching residents,

that they say the fire department now telling CNN that they are still trapped in that building.

They are in touch with some of them, and that it is obviously a grave situation given the high temperatures. They are telling residents to

obviously try and seal their windows, put wet towels, but right now their task is to try and reach some of these residents that remain trapped.

Unfortunately, it was the middle of the afternoon. Some of the residents are elderly, perhaps have mobility issues, and they remain trapped in that

Hong Kong high rise fire. We will bring you updates as we receive them in the next hour, but we do want to now move on to other news.

The Kremlin says it is premature to talk about an end to the war in Ukraine as U.S. President Donald Trump walks back his own Thursday deadline for a

peace agreement. Now, he says his son in law, Jared Kushner, may travel to Moscow with Special Envoy Steve Witkoff for negotiations next week.

[09:20:00]

And all of this comes as Bloomberg published a bombshell leak of phone call between Witkoff and one of Putin's aides in October. Now in the transcript,

Witkoff seems to be offering up tips on how the Kremlin should approach Trump for a peace plan. The White House says the call proves the

administration is working hard to achieve peace.

CNN's Paula Hancocks is live for us in Abu Dhabi. And Paula, if you can bring us right up to date. I mean, it was just in the last few days that we

had negotiations actually going on there in Abu Dhabi. This peace proposed peace deal seems to be moving forward. I think everyone is still wondering,

though, what would be Russia's reaction at this point.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Paula, we have had some reaction throughout the day from Russia itself. We heard from the Kremlin

spokesperson saying it's premature to say that this is being close to an end, also saying that he believes there'll be many people that will try and

disrupt the process, including in the United States.

We also heard from one of the key Putin aides, Yuri Ushakov, and he said that that they have received this latest version of the plan, and there are

many aspects that still require discussion, pointing out that the two sides, presumably Ukraine and Russia have not discussed at this point.

But what we are hearing from Ushakov as well, is criticism of this leaked phone call that Bloomberg reported on between Steve Witkoff, the special

envoy of the Trump Administration, and this aid, where he appeared to be coaching the Kremlin on how to approach the White House and how to approach

the U.S. President when it came to this potential proposal as well.

I want to read you part of what this transcript is. There is a part where Witkoff says, quote, just reiterate that you congratulate the president on

this achievement, that you supported it, that you respect that he's a man of peace, and you're just, you're really glad to have seen it happen.

Now, in response to that, Ushakov says, quote, I agree with you that he will congratulate, he will say that Mr. Trump is a real peace man, and so

and so. So, this is a very rare insight, really, into how Steve Witkoff is negotiating. He is a former real estate investor developer.

He doesn't have a history of negotiation. And we also have heard from Ushakov saying, quote, some of these leaks are fake. Others I would prefer

not to comment on at all, as for example, my conversations with Witkoff are confidential. No one should disclose them.

No one. Now it's worth pointing out we don't know who has leaked this call. At this point, we have had a response from the U.S. President, though he

seems quite unconcerned by this leak, saying that I heard it was standard negotiation saying I should imagine it's the same way as he's speaking to

Ukraine, but it has caused some concern among some Republicans in the United States.

One even calling for Witkoff to be fired. There are many who are Russia hawks who believe that Witkoff has been to pro Russia in these

negotiations. And certainly, we're hearing from others, the Coalition of the Willing, the European Union, that the UK, that there are concerns that

the initial plan, certainly this 28-point plan, was very favorable to Russia.

Obviously, that the negotiations are ongoing now on a number of different tracks to try and make that deal more palatable to Ukraine and to the

Europeans. But of course, that could again make it less palatable to Russia, Paula.

NEWTON: Yeah, and throughout all this, we should say that the president again reiterating that he does expect, at least one of his envoys, if not a

couple, to be in Moscow next week. Paula Hancocks grateful to you for the update. Now we're also closely following the escalating battle between the

Trump Administration and the Democrats the president is accusing of sedition.

A source tells CNN that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is looking to make an example of Senator Mark Kelly. He is the retired Navy captain and one of

the six Democratic lawmakers who appeared in the video urging U.S. troops to disobey illegal orders. Hegseth is said to be considering a range of

potential punishments, from reducing Kelly's rank and pension to prosecuting him under military law.

CNN's Zachary Cohen has been following this story for us. This is truly extraordinary on so many levels, really. Mark Kelly has been hitting back.

But what more are you learning about what Pete Hegseth can actually do? We learn of what he's thinking of. But is any of that possible?

[09:25:00]

ZACHARY COHEN, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yeah. Paula, we know that Pete Hegseth has really focused his public attacks against these

Democrats that appear in this video on Senator Mark Kelly, who of the six that were participating. He achieved the longest tenure and the highest

rank in the military during his time in service.

And we're told now that, behind closed doors, Hegseth is considering a variety of options to effectively punish Kelly, using potentially military

law to do so. I mean, that is something we're told, technically speaking, is possible that Kelly, because of his status as a retiree from the

military, he could be recalled back into active service and court marshaled as a result.

Now it remains unclear, despite all the public attacks levied by the president on down to his cabinet members, what exact violation of the

what's known as a uniform military code of justice, what violation Kelly in their minds committed by speaking out about in this video.

But at the same time, we've seen them float several different possibilities, including the president himself, using our words of art,

terms of art, legal terms of art, like sedition and treason. So, he clearly has been calling on his administration to hold these lawmakers accountable

and to really send a message.

And that's what Hegseth appears willing to do by focusing his efforts on Kelly himself. Now in response to the latest conversation about Kelly, a

coalition of former military judge advocates issued a rare statement calling this push political or partisan in nature, legally baseless and

compromised by unlawful influence.

And of course, the last one they're referring to Hegseth's own public comments about Kelly, in which he's insinuated his, Kelly's guilt and

effectively tainted the process, according to these former military lawyers, preventing Kelly from ever getting a fair trial if it comes to

that.

Now, Hegseth has given his Navy Secretary until December 10th to review this case and provide him with recommendations on how to move forward, but

ultimately, at the end of the day, this will be up to Hegseth to decide if he wants to continue to push for Mark Kelly's potential legal proceedings

in military court.

NEWTON: Yeah. And what should be noted that Pete Hegseth could certainly perhaps tarnish Mark Kelly's military career. His political career seems to

be getting a boost. Zachary Cohen, for us from Washington, appreciate it. You are watching "Connect the World". We will continue to give you updates

on that fire in Hong Kong. Stay with us. We'll have more news after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEWTON: Welcome back. I'm Paula Newton in New York, and you are watching "Connect the World". These are the headlines we're watching this hour. Fire

crews in Hong Kong are struggling to control a deadly fire that is raging through several high-rise apartment towers.

Authorities say at least 13 people have died, including firefighter and an unknown number of people are feared trapped.

[09:30:00]

At least 15 others have been injured. No word yet on what may have sparked the huge blaze. The Kremlin says it is premature to talk about an end to

the war in Ukraine, as a Ukrainian source tells CNN three key sticking points remain on their side of the negotiations.

Now, meantime U.S. President Trump says Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will meet with Putin next week in Moscow, and Jared Kushner may be traveling

with him. Israel says the body of a hostage returned from Gaza has been identified as a father of three. Dror Or, he was killed in the October 7th

attack alongside his wife, Yonat.

Two of their children were abducted and taken into Gaza, but were released the following month. Turning to the UK now for one of the most significant

days in its financial calendar, the announcement of the budget. Now Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves has been outlining the

government's economic plans for the year ahead with changes to spending and taxes, but before the chancellor could even deliver her speech, the

independent fiscal watchdog.

The Office for Budget Responsibility released its budget report online. That's an error that many are calling an unprecedented leak. CNN's Anna

Cooban has been following this breaking story for us in London. I'm really speechless about this. I mean the word responsibility in this government

office already pains me to even have to say the word.

It is colossal, Anna, because it obviously can and will affect markets the minute that it is released. What has happened since it was released? And

how is the government reacting to this?

ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS & ECONOMICS REPORTER: Well, Paula, actually the biggest casualty in all of this is the face of the government. Is their

credibility, their authority. Markets have actually been pretty neutral in response to this budget. Rachel Reeves has very much tried to strike the

balance between trying not to alienate voter's businesses with tax rises that punch too hard.

But also trying to convince investors that the UK government is serious about reining in its high levels of government debt. I mean, one stat that

she mentioned in Parliament was that one pound out of every 10 by the government is spent on servicing UK debt alone, just on the interest.

But you're right, this leak, by the OBR of its announcement was unprecedented, and it comes at a time when we've seen other leaks come from

government reports over the recent days around Reeves' plans to hike income tax more generally, which would have been a contradiction to what the Labor

Party promised during its election campaign that was had a reported U-turn.

So, this is a crisis of credibility for the government, and all the while, Reeves, again, as I said, is trying to walk that tight rope between keeping

all of these different parties happy.

NEWTON: Yeah, just it must be dismal right now for people, as they turn in tune in to this budget and are wondering what it means for them personally.

There's been a huge debate in the UK about rising taxes. It does seem now that, you know, British taxpayers will be paying more, at least some of

them will.

COOBAN: Absolutely and this has been described. The word being banging about is a smorgasbord. You've got a smorgasbord always little tax. You've

got a rise of on savings properties, a so-called mansion tax, which is a hike to tax on properties worth over 2 million pounds.

Now this is a way for Reeves to try and raise the money needed without hiking income tax more generally, which, as I said, would have been a break

to an election promise. But according to Deutsche Bank, this is the third highest tax hiking budget since 2010.

And again, it's coming at a time of the question -- the authority of the UK government really being questioned, and Reeves trying to walk that really,

really delicate balance.

NEWTON: Yeah. I mean, given what the task ahead of them, I've only got about 30 seconds left, but at this point in time, many people were also

expressing concerns about cuts. Did they announce any extraordinary cuts that would really be alarming, especially when it comes to things like the

NHS?

COOBAN: No, there was nothing that really jumped out as being particularly striking in that regard. I think the main issue for the from the

government's perspective, was trying not to spook markets like we saw a few years ago. If you remember Liz Truss with her disastrous mini budget, she

really was the ghost hanging over this budget, bond markets were set into an absolute spiral.

So, this was a test of the UK government's authority and credibility, but also of their credibility among investors. Bond investors, particularly,

can the world's sixth largest economy reign in its finances and stop its debt from spiraling?

NEWTON: Yeah, last time I looked, the pound had certainly firmed up against the U.S. dollar, perhaps a sign of what is to come, and the reviews on this

budget. Anna Cooban for us. Thanks so much. Appreciate it. And we will be right back with more news in a moment, and that includes an update on that

horrific fire in Hong Kong. Stay with us.

[09:35:00]

NEWTON: And returning now to our breaking news, at least 13 people have been killed in an enormous fire which has engulfed a huge high rise

apartment complex in Hong Kong. There are fears people may still be trapped inside some of those buildings. Now, seven of the blocks are still burning.

Several hours after the fire started, the flames are thought to have spread rapidly via bamboo scaffolding. Firefighters say high temperatures are

hampering their efforts to contain this fire. Eye witnesses have described the situation in the Tai Po district of the city as one of the most

shocking things they have ever seen in Hong Kong.

It is now believed to be the city's deadliest fire in nearly three decades. Now I spoke with CNN Senior International Correspondent Ivan Watson, in the

last half hour.

WATSON: I can see a third ladder from a fire truck now spraying water on this side of the burning towers, but I think there are more towers actually

burning than I can see water hoses spraying on the towers from this side. I think there are, there are five burning right now.

As you can see, there are dozens and dozens of fire trucks that are on the scene. But this is a deadly fire, and is on track to perhaps be one of the

deadliest that Hong Kong has seen in decades. Among 13 people confirmed killed so far and dozens injured are one veteran firefighter who had nine

years of experience.

A 37-year-old man named Ho Waiho (ph) and the authorities have expressed condolences to his family at his loss right now. But to just give you some

context, this is a public housing development that was constructed in 1983. It's called Wang Fuk court, and it had more than 4000 residents, nearly

2000 apartments in there.

And it looks to me as if the towers of the public housing development are burning from the top, from the roof, down to the bottom floors, and there

are no signs of the fires being brought under control. Now, I don't know from the live image that you're seeing, or perhaps Dan can show you.

But there you can see some of the bamboo scaffolding that sheathes the left side of one of those towers. There were renovations going on around these

towers when the fire broke out, and Hong Kong does its construction, traditionally with bamboo scaffolding, which is lighter, and I think that

many would argue stronger, in some respects, than steel, than metal scaffolding.

[09:40:00]

But it may be that, that contributed to the spread of the fire, which the authorities say got an initial alert about a fire just before 03:00 p.m.

local time on a ground floor area that was under renovation and as the fire departments were responding to it, it seems to have quickly spread to

neighboring towers to such a speed that by just two hours later, this fireman had already been declared a dead.

And he was the leader of one of these fire trucks, an experienced officer. One of the concerns here is that among the more than 4000 residents of

these -- of the public housing development, many of the residents would have been over 65 years old. I am hoping, I am praying, that people were

evacuated in time to not have been caught in this terrible inferno that has climbed up at least four of these towers that I'm looking at right now.

Because even rescue, I think is impossible to imagine with these types of flames, and I don't see ladders reaching up into the buildings on this side

of the towers. Now, there may be a different scene on the other side, and that -- where some of the residents are trying to help some of them.

But again, this would be a deadly fire, the deadliest that I can remember in Hong Kong, and I've lived here for 10 years, that has grown completely

out of control here in Hong Kong's Tai Po district.

NEWTON: That was Ivan Watson on the scene just in the last few minutes. We will continue to update that breaking news for you. In the meantime, the

"World Sport" is after this -- here, after a quick break. We'll be back at the top of the hour with more news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)

[10:00:00]

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