The Shek Kip Mei fire () took place in

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

on 25 December 1953. It destroyed the Shek Kip Mei

shanty town A shanty town, squatter area, squatter settlement, or squatter camp is a settlement of improvised buildings known as shanties or shacks, typically made of materials such as mud and wood, or from cheap building materials such as corrugated iron s ...

of immigrants from

mainland China "Mainland China", also referred to as "the Chinese mainland", is a Geopolitics, geopolitical term defined as the territory under direct administration of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War. In addit ...

who had fled to Hong Kong, leaving over 53,000 people homeless. The area that was destroyed by the fire is bounded by Boundary St. and Tai Po Rd. After the fire, the governor

Alexander Grantham Sir Alexander William George Herder Grantham, GCMG ( zh, c=葛量洪; 15 March 1899 – 4 October 1978) was a British colonial administrator who governed Hong Kong and Fiji. Early life, colonial administration career Grantham was born on ...

launched a public housing programme to introduce the idea of "multi-storey building" for the immigrant population living there. The standardised new structures offered fire- and flood-resistant construction to previously vulnerable hut dwellers. The programme involved demolishing the rest of the makeshift houses left untouched by the fire, and the construction of the Shek Kip Mei Low-cost Housing Estate in their stead. Alongside a huge volunteer effort, the council spent nearly HK$16 million in relief work.

References

External links

Shek Kip Mei fire, Stories of Hong Kong from Hong Kong Public Libraries, Retrieved 2018-05-25
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Fires in Hong Kong Shek Kip Mei 1953 in Hong Kong {{HongKong-stub

See also

References

External links