At least 44 people have died and 279 others have been reported missing as a blaze which tore through a Hong Kong apartment complex burned for a second day.
A 37-year-old firefighter taking part in the rescue effort was among the dead, while at least 71 others were injured.
Hundreds of the apartment block's 4000 residents – most of them elderly – were evacuated to temporary shelters.
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Over 880 firefighters have been tackling the grade five blaze – the most severe ranking in Hong Kong – 22 hours after it began. The firefighting operation could last until at least later this evening.
"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 firefighting and rescue operation," deputy director of fire services, Derek Armstrong Chan, said.
The fire broke out at the 32-storey subsidised housing complex in Tai Po district, a suburb in the New Territories, on Wednesday afternoon.
Officials discovered polystyrene boards blocking windows of the building, which had been under renovation since last July. Bamboo scaffolding likely helped fuel the flames.
Three men – two directors and an engineering consultant from a construction company – were arrested on suspicion of manslaughter in connection with the fire.
"We have reason to believe that the company’s responsible parties were grossly negligent," Hong Kong Police Senior Superintendent Eileen Chung told reporters.
Flames and thick smoke could be seen billowing across the city as the fire spread across seven of the eight towers making up the Wang Fuk Court complex.
Fires at four of the towers were now under control, local authorities said.
Hong Kong's Chief Executive John Lee extended his "deepest condolences to the deceased and my heartfelt sympathies to their families and the injured".
"We will provide all possible support."
Authorities say 26 teams of rescuers have now begun searching the lower levels of the towers.
An investigation into the blaze was ongoing.
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