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Quest Means Business

Blaze Erupts in Hong Kong's Tai Po District; Two National Guardsmen Shot in Washington, D.C. Near White House. Aired 4:20-4:52p ET

Aired November 26, 2025 - 16:20   ET

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

[16:22:45]

PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: And good evening. I'm Paula Newton in New York. We will continue to follow, of course, the breaking news about that

shooting in Washington. We will bring you updates as we get them.

But, of course, we want to go to the other breaking news story we have been following here for several hours. We go to Hong Kong where at least 36

people have died and nearly 300 are still missing after a fire engulfed multiple apartment buildings there hours after the blaze now is still

burning.

You can see from these images, the scale of the task for firefighters. Rescuers are working to reach residents on the higher floors who have been

trapped for now more than 12 hours. Many are believed to be elderly. Authorities are investigating the cause of the fire and say they've

arrested three men on suspicion of manslaughter in relation to this incident.

Ivan Watson was reporting a short time ago from the scene and brings us right up-to-date.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're some 13 hours after this fire was first reported to the Fire Department. And while some

of the intensity of the flames has reduced, as you can see, these towers are still very much burning still. Seven of the eight towers in this public

housing, the development went up in flames.

We had heard from the Fire Department, from a top official who announced that they had gotten emergency calls from residents trapped inside who were

informed to stay in their homes, that it was too dangerous for the firemen to get up to those, particularly the higher floors. We have not heard of

any rescues. Instead, as we heard from the chief executive, John Lee, the death toll grew to 36 dead and I think, more ominously, nearly 280 people

who are still unaccounted.

For a bit of context there were nearly 2,000 apartments in these towers here. These are public housing constructed in 1983 and provided homes for

more than 4,000 people. The fire first began at one edge of this compound just before 3:00 in the afternoon.

[16:25:00]

But by the time the Fire Department arrived on the scene, the flames had already grown within the A Tower and had also caught on fire to the bamboo

scaffolding and the protective construction netting that sheathed all of the towers.

And then, you know, part of what I think will clearly need to be investigated and is raising a lot of questions is how the fire then spread

to the neighboring towers with such speed. That's going to be a big question moving forward.

But as we can see, the emergency still isn't over. These flames are still burning. There are still firemen dozens, scores of emergency vehicles here

and police on the ground. And I can still hear drones overhead. Sometimes they have spotlights that shine down as well. This will be a tremendous

shock for Hong Kong, a city that, while densely populated, has a solid record of public safety.

NEWTON: Ivan Watson there on the scene. Now, there are nearly 2,000 units in this complex where the fire was burning, and as I mentioned earlier,

some residents are still trapped on those higher floors. Authorities are advising them to stay put as they work to reach them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DEREK ARMSTRONG CHAN, DEPUTY DIRECTOR, HONG KONG FIRE DEPARTMENT: For those who are still trapped in their homes, the best thing to do now is to

close all the doors and windows, seal them up with tape and wet napkins. Call us and tell us your unit number and the amount of people inside your

apartment, and we will be in touch as soon as possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Glenn Corbett is a former assistant chief of the Waldwick Fire Department in New Jersey and an associate professor of fire science at John

Jay College and Glenn, I thank you for joining us.

You know, we continue to watch this fire so many hours later. There are still flames ripping through this very large complex, several towers, in

fact. What are your impressions, especially given now that authorities in Hong Kong say they've arrested three people on suspicion of manslaughter?

GLENN CORBETT, FORMER FIRE DEPARTMENT ASSISTANT CHIEF, WALDWICK, NEW JERSEY: Yes. So, there's a lot of issues present here. Certainly, you

know, the fact that it's still burning tells me that the fire, as I would suspect, burned not only up the outside the building, but then burned into

the individual apartments on each of these floors. This is very reminiscent of the Grenfell fire in London back in 2017 where this -- it was primarily

an exterior fire that made its way into the interior. It's very much like this.

The fact that we had, in this case, apparently, of course the bamboo scaffolding, which, of course, is wood, it's combustible, as well as, the

netting, which is probably polyethylene, which is plastic, which is also combustible, provide the fuel. And the fact that, you know, it spread from

one building to another tells me that they were close enough that the heat of the fire on the exterior of the original fire building was able to

ignite the netting and the scaffolding on these adjacent buildings.

So, one important point that was brought up here recently is the fact that, you know, and virtually every high-rise apartment fire, we always advise

residents to stay where they are unless directed to leave. But that proved to be the wrong strategy at Grenfell because people -- there's no time for

them, for the firefighters to -- literally, there's no ability for the firefighters to extinguish the exterior fire to get them quickly. So, I

think that issue will come up as well.

And you mentioned also that three people arrested. We don't know exactly what their connection to the fire was, if they were contractors or if they

were setting these fires intentionally or whatever. But all that will need to be looked at.

But I would suggest to the Hong Kong Fire Service that they take the time to do a deep study of what happened here, including not just the building

health and the scaffolding and those issues, but also the response here of what directions we're giving to the occupants of these buildings.

NEWTON: Yes, absolutely, because it's so terrifying. And as you mentioned, that tragic fire from 2017, more than 70 people killed in London, and so

much from that investigation was learned in terms of how it was ignited and how crucially, as you explain it, spread.

If we take what we learned in that fire to this, okay, we had the scaffolding, we had some kind of a mesh around it as well, but I think

you've hit the nail on the head there. We have eyewitness reports of people saying they didn't know what was going on. They were in another apartment

complex, had plenty of time to evacuate, but they report not hearing any alarm, not having anyone go door to door to tell them, get out, it is not

safe, your building may not be burning, but you are in danger.

[16:30:00]

CORBETT: Right. And, you know, that is an issue around the world. Even in New York City we try to get retrofit public -- one way public address

system into existing high rises. And we couldn't get it done because of the pushback from the real estate industry.

It's a really important for people, as you just point out, to know what to do during a fire. And again, 99.9 percent of the time, an apartment fire

where the fire starts particularly on the inside of the building, it's safest to stay in the apartment, not try to go down the hallway or the

stairs and things like that.

But again, like Grenfell, this was an exterior fire that burned its way into the building and it was completely beyond the control of the fire

departments in London and the fire department in Hong Kong. This is -- this is way too fast and way too high for them to deal with it. And I think,

again, the lessons from Grenfell were we got to think more carefully about how we build the buildings, but also what we tell people during a fire and

get that information to them quickly.

And in buildings that don't have that capability, a PA system or some other type of communications system, we need to figure it out and what we're

going to do, because, again, people's lives are in danger and perhaps we've lost -- we would expect even more in this particular fire.

NEWTON: Yes, it is a terrifying thought, though, I have to tell you, when you can see that there's an inferno all around you, there's clearly smoke,

and authorities are telling you to stay locked inside your apartment. Again, we stress about a third of the residents in there are elderly, may

have had mobility issues. I mean, you know, you've talked about some of the things you've tried to get done and many people have tried to get done in

high rises around the world.

Given the state of modern technology, what do you think is the one thing that everyone can do here when they look at a fire like this? Because the

integrity of the building was compromised, actually, it took a while. People could have gotten out.

CORBETT: Yes. And again, we've learned for many serious high rise fires over the years that we need to particularly look at how we -- what we tell

people, and for folks that are living in buildings like this, you know, the fact that there's this kind of this renovation work, I don't know if they

were doing redesigning the building, perhaps, it appears to me, that is a danger time. And, you know, the fact that they had several buildings all at

once doing this is important.

You know, it's important that we're going to have to study that and, of course, figure out how big a role did that play, spreading from the first

building to the succeeding buildings. The other thing, too, is that what level of fire safety was provided for the construction work itself, right?

So we had a bad fire many years ago in New York City right next to the World Trade Center. The Deutsche Bank building was under demolition and two

firefighters got killed there with so much combustible plywood even in the building.

So my suggestion to folks that live in these complexes is take an active role, ask, you know, assure your own fire safety. Don't expect the

government to do everything. Ask questions. Say what -- how is this being handled in terms of fire protection during this construction renovation

work? Because this is an incredibly dangerous time for that building and of course, the people inside.

NEWTON: Yes, such a good point that many may not have thought of before. And the fact that when these renovations are going on, yes, you are more

vulnerable to these kinds of catastrophic events and need to be prepared.

Glenn Corbett, we'll leave it there. Appreciate it.

And we will be right back in a moment with the latest from our other breaking story in Washington, D.C., where two National Guardsmen have been

shot just blocks from the White House.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:36:40]

NEWTON: And we continue to follow the breaking news out of Washington, D.C. Law enforcement sources say two National Guardsmen who were shot near the

White House were targeted. D.C. Police say the suspect is now in custody. One source says the individual is not cooperating and did not have any

identification on him.

Kristen Holmes is in West Palm Beach, but we begin with John Miller, who is in Washington, D.C.

I mean, John, what are your sources telling you? What we just learned there is incredibly tragic because from what we understand of the events these

National Guardsmen were targeted.

JOHN MILLER, CNN CHIEF LAW ENFORCEMENT AND INTELLIGENCE ANALYST: And that is what it appears based on law enforcement's earliest reviews of the video

from security cameras. It appears that the suspect walks up to the Guardsmen who are in uniform fairly quickly, pulls out a handgun, and opens

fire, and then in the next chaotic seconds, another Guardsman appears on the video to take cover and possibly return fire.

You see the glass of a bus shelter shatter. One of the Guardsmen goes down on the ground. A number of law enforcement people who appear very quickly

in that area is heavily patrolled by the Secret Service Uniform Division that patrols the perimeter of the White House, which is just two blocks

over and one block down. So within three blocks of this scene, very quickly appear with additional Guardsmen who were on separate posts around this

Farragut Train Station where the incident occurred.

And they are struggling on the ground to handcuff a suspect who in this possible crossfire with other National Guardsmen was wounded. And in the

moments of chaos, you can see that this occurred very suddenly. So it is not an incident where something else was going on and the National Guard

soldiers intervened in some other street crime in progress. It appears at this point that they were targeted deliberately by this individual who at

this time is still unidentified.

NEWTON: And, John, forgive me, you were clearly in New York and not in Washington. And I do want to lean into your deep experience in this city as

being with the NYPD and really leading the terrorism outfit here. I mean, what are your impressions at this point, given the fact that these were

National Guard that were supposed to be deployed to make the city safer, and now they themselves, it appears, have been targeted?

MILLER: Well, the National Guard has become of late a little bit of a lightning rod because of how this administration has deployed them and what

controversies they have found themselves in the middle of, whether it is the role that they have played in multiple cities in assisting groups like

ICE, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Border Patrol. They have become a bit of a lightning rod in the round-up and deportation efforts

that are going on for people who are here illegally.

But at the same time, just their presence in Washington makes them a potential target because there they are in uniform. And I think it was on

November 7th, we saw another call from ISIS, which is reemerging through its propaganda arms, to call on lone wolf attacks in both the United States

and Europe and to attack symbols of the government and law enforcement.

[16:40:15]

So right now, we don't know what the motive was, and we probably won't know what the motive was or is in this case until they get that gunman

identified and figure out what has he been doing, who has he been communicating with, did he leave a message behind or forward about the

motive for this? Right now, that's a blank spot. They're going through the possibilities. But he, when he's identified, is going to be the key to

those answers.

NEWTON: Kristen Holmes, to you now in Florida, you are traveling with the president. He is in Mar-a-Lago for Thanksgiving. He obviously has taken

action here and has already made his thoughts pretty clear given this absolutely chilling event. As I said, inside of two blocks from the White

House.

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And they are monitoring this very closely. And I do want to note, I'm not sure if you

announced this yet, but we have now heard from the Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who says that President Trump has ordered 500 new troops to

be sent to D.C. in the aftermath of this shooting for what he says is to keep the city beautiful and safe.

I had actually spoken to a number of members of the D.C. government and D.C. responders who believe that this was likely to be where this story

went, that President Trump was going to ramp up the presence in Washington, D.C. Now, we won't see President Trump again today. They called what they

call a lid, which means the president won't be seen in public. He's not going to be making any remarks.

But that doesn't mean that he's not going to be posting on Truth Social. And as we've already seen, he has been kind of breaking some of the news of

what he is hearing to the public in his True Social post. He was the one who noted for the first time that there were two Guardsmen down who had

been critically injured. That critically injured part was not something we had heard before.

Obviously, as we've been reporting, there's some confusion as to what exactly happened with those two Guardsmen. The West Virginia governor first

saying that they had both died, then coming back and saying that he was getting conflicting reports. So we're still waiting on that part of this.

Then President Trump essentially vowing retribution against the suspect, saying that he was severely injured, that's how the public learned about

the suspect's well-being, and then noting that he was going to essentially, quote-unquote, "pay the price" for what happened on the streets of D.C.

earlier today.

One of the things I am told the White House is watching incredibly closely is the motive, the why for all of this. And right now, they still seem to

have no answers.

NEWTON: Yes. And it may be some time before they get those answers.

Kristen Holmes, grateful to you on the ground in Florida, who will come back to us with any more breaking news.

And we will have more news after a quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:45:59]

NEWTON: And more now on our breaking news out of Washington, D.C. Two National Guardsmen were shot a short time ago near the White House. Law

enforcement sources say the Guardsmen engaged in gunfire with the suspect before being shot. Police say the scene is now secure and a suspect is in

custody.

National Guard troops from multiple states have been in the U.S. Capitol as part of the president's crackdown on crime in that city.

Daniel Brunner is a retired FBI special agent, and he joins us now.

And I kind of want to get your opinion on this as we hear from the president that he's deploying 500 more troops to the city. In your

estimation, is this a good idea at this hour?

DANIEL BRUNNER, FORMER FBI SPECIAL AGENT: Well, I think at this point we're seeing that, you know, National Guardsmen were deployed in downtown D.C.,

where not necessarily all of the crime is being seen. Anacostia, the outskirts where there's more crime incidents, if you're going to deploy

Guardsmen, I think it would be there. But clearly your Guardsmen are standing out on posts, standing at the street corner.

That was, in my opinion, this was a targeted attack based on the witnesses reporting, saying that all of a sudden they heard gunshots. There was no

chaos, no struggling. And the fact that you're seeing photos from on scene, whereas the glass was shattered at the bus stop, my opinion is based on my

instincts as an FBI agent for 20 years, this individual targeted, found these two Guardsmen who were standing their post, and they just walked

right up.

This is a very difficult environment for them. They're not built for law enforcement. They are National Guardsmen. They are trained in combat

military operations. They're not trained in, you know, street crime, street incidents, and how to recognize a potential threat that's upcoming to them.

So they're putting -- I feel that the president is putting them in a very difficult position, targeting them and making them somewhat of a scene of a

target for an incident, much like what we see here today.

NEWTON: And this has been disputed in the courts as well. In fact, the very presence of National Guard is still at this moment before the courts. In

terms of them becoming a political target, I mean, as you said, you as a former FBI agent, are you creating -- in fact, let's pause to listen to the

FBI director, Kash Patel.

KASH PATEL, FBI DIRECTOR: -- to include the Department of Homeland Security, Secret Service, ATF, DEA, and we're thankful for the mayor's

assistance in this matter. The Metropolitan Police Department, and their skills in investigating homicides and gun shootings in this city is

exceptional. We will work together collaboratively because this is a matter of national security, because this is a matter of pride.

President Trump has been informed. We've been in contact with the White House. We will shortchange the American public with no resources to make

sure we find and safeguard our nation's capital right here in Washington, D.C., and bring anyone responsible for this heinous act of violence to

justice.

I would lastly like to add, to the American public and the world, please send your prayers to those brave warriors who are in critical condition and

their families. They are here serving our country. They are here protecting everyday Americans and citizens around the world in our nation's capital.

They are the heroes of this day. And we must remember them on this day and every day, and their families and the sacrifice they have made.

I will now turn it over to Chief Carroll of the Metropolitan Police Department. Thank you.

JEFF CARROLL, EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT CHIEF, METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT: Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Jeff Carroll. I'm the executive

assistant chief here at the Metropolitan Police Department. At approximately 2:15 this afternoon, members of the D.C. National Guard were

on high visibility patrols in the area of 17th and I Street, northwest, when a suspect came around the corner, raised his arm with a firearm and

discharged at the National Guard members.

The National Guard members, there were other members that were in the area, they were able to -- after some back and forth, able to subdue the

individual and bring him into custody. Within moments, members of law enforcement in the area were also able to assist and bring that individual

into custody.

At this time, as the director mentioned, the National Guard members are being treated at a local hospital.

[16:50:05]

D.C. Fire and EMS responded to the scene to provide first aid for those individuals and transport them to a local hospital. The suspect in this

case was also transported for treatment at a local hospital. Madam Mayor?

MAYOR MURIEL BOWSER, WASHINGTON, D.C.: Thank you. I'm Muriel Bowser. I'm the mayor of Washington, D.C. and I too want to send my thoughts and

prayers to the families of the Guardsmen and to the Guardsmen who are in critical condition in a local hospital.

I am joined by members and leadership from the D.C. National Guard, from the West Virginia National Guard, United States Secret Service, Deputy

Mayor Appiah, Fire Chief Donnelly and Metro's General Manager Randy Clark. And we join with FBI director in ensuring that MPD investigates. The U.S.

attorney prosecutes this case to the fullest extent of the law.

I've had the opportunity to brief U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi who was speaking to the president when I called, as well as the United States

attorney, Pirro, who assured me that this case will have her office's complete attention.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Mayor, was there any other suspect?

BOWSER: Chief?

CARROLL: Sure. So, no, at this time, there's no indication that there was any other suspect. The one suspect that was involved in this incident, they

were shot during the interaction, and they were transported to the hospital for treatment.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Mayor, does this validate the need for the National Guard here in D.C.?

BOWSER: What we know, Andrea, is that this is a targeted shooting. One individual who appeared to target these Guardsmen, that individual has been

taken into custody.

[16:51:56]

END