The recent massive fire at Hongfu Garden in Hong Kong has drawn deep public attention to building safety. The reporter interviewed Zhou Yunji, a special consultant to the president of the China Civil Aviation Flight Academy and chief professor of aviation safety, and an emeritus professor of construction science and fire engineering at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University to analyze the fire spread logic and investigation difficulties from a professional perspective. In response to the problem that “shed nets do not meet flame retardant standards” pointed out by the government, Professor Zhou Yunji pointed out that the flame retardant design of shed nets is mostly aimed at small fires and has limited effect in the face of large fires. Through field images and fire dynamics analysis, he deduced that the fire might spread rapidly through the three stages of “combustible matter gathering → air suction to form an upward flame → lateral wind boost”, and specifically pointed out that there is a difference between this “horizontal spread” and common vertical spread patterns. Regarding the safety dispute between bamboo scaffolding and metal scaffolding, Professor Zhou said that the differences between the two are limited in extreme fires: although bamboo is combustible, it can often retain the load-bearing structure, and the metal softens and deforms when exposed to high temperatures, all of which require a comprehensive assessment of the overall safety plan of the building. Faced with heavy casualties, he emphasized that fire prevention and control is a “system project” — property management, owners, tenants, and construction units must jointly build a security system, and long-term cultivation of a safety culture is a top priority. The fire investigation faced challenges due to the serious burning of the site, and a full report will take a long time.

The recent massive fire at Hongfu Garden in Hong Kong has drawn deep public attention to building safety. The reporter interviewed Zhou Yunji, a special consultant to the president of the China Civil Aviation Flight Academy and chief professor of aviation safety, and an emeritus professor of construction science and fire engineering at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University to analyze the fire spread logic and investigation difficulties from a professional perspective. In response to the problem that “shed nets do not meet flame retardant standards” pointed out by the government, Professor Zhou Yunji pointed out that the flame retardant design of shed nets is mostly aimed at small fires and has limited effect in the face of large fires. Through field images and fire dynamics analysis, he deduced that the fire might spread rapidly through the three stages of “combustible matter gathering → air suction to form an upward flame → lateral wind boost”, and specifically pointed out that there is a difference between this “horizontal spread” and common vertical spread patterns. Regarding the safety dispute between bamboo scaffolding and metal scaffolding, Professor Zhou said that the differences between the two are limited in extreme fires: although bamboo is combustible, it can often retain the load-bearing structure, and the metal softens and deforms when exposed to high temperatures, all of which require a comprehensive assessment of the overall safety plan of the building. Faced with heavy casualties, he emphasized that fire prevention and control is a “system project” — property management, owners, tenants, and construction units must jointly build a security system, and long-term cultivation of a safety culture is a top priority. The fire investigation faced challenges due to the serious burning of the site, and a full report will take a long time.