After Hong Kong’s deadly fire, the art of bamboo scaffolding hangs in the balance
When Daisy Pak decided she wanted to become a bamboo scaffolder, she had to overcome her fear of heights.
The 32-year-old did so, little by little, and developed a passion for working with materials that have been used in construction in Hong Kong for over a century. Pak’s specialty is building bamboo slats on top of buildings to replace windows or air conditioners on the outside of buildings.
“I was working in a nightclub,” he said. “Bamboo scaffolding means a lot to me. It has changed my life a lot.”
But this life-changing love was thrust into the spotlight a year ago after a deadly tragedy.
On the 26th of Nov. 2025, the deadliest fire in decades broke out when a Hong Kong apartment building, which was being renovated, caught fire. The Wang Fuk Court fire burned seven of the estate’s eight bricks, which were covered with bamboo scaffolding and safety nets. It took firefighters more than 40 hours to put out the blaze.
At least 168 people died, including one firefighter. About 5,000 residents have been displaced.
Bamboo scaffolding was considered. The green net, which covered the outside of the scaffolding, caught fire and some of the bamboo poles also caught fire and fell.
Local residents quickly defended the practice online and the government pointed to flammable styrofoam, which had been used to block windows, and low-quality netting around the scaffolding as contributing to the fire’s rapid spread.
The investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing. More than ten people have been arrested and are accused of murder and corruption in relation to the renovation of the area.
Traditional technology
The method of making bamboo scaffolding used in Hong Kong originated in China, rooted in ancient structures.
Cheap, abundant and sustainable bamboo, woven together with nylon ropes – is often seen covering buildings in Hong Kong. Across the border in China, builders are increasingly using metal alternatives, after regulators in the 1990s mandated that bamboo be replaced with steel and aluminum.
Bamboo scaffolding is also used in open-air bamboo theaters for religious rituals and Cantonese opera performances.
Development Secretary Bernadette Linn said last November that although bamboo construction has a long history in Hong Kong, “the government feels it is necessary to make a road to switch to steel scaffolds as soon as possible under appropriate working environment conditions.”
Last March, the Hong Kong Development Bureau announced that part of the new public construction projects will need to use steel scaffolding to comply with the construction standards of mainland China and “developed economies.” It cited security reasons.
According to the Department of Labor, there have been 20 industrial deaths involving bamboo scaffolding at construction sites between 2019 and 2025. Last year, 11 workers were injured when a bamboo scaffold collapsed at the work site. Just last week, a worker died after falling while climbing a bamboo scaffolding.
The Development Bureau said that bamboo scaffolding had “intrinsic weaknesses,” such as “variation of mechanical properties, deterioration over time and high flammability.”
Robert Crawford, a professor of construction and environmental assessment at the University of Melbourne, said steel scaffolding connections are probably stronger than bamboo connections, and therefore better for worker safety.
Hong Kong completes removal of bamboo scaffolds
Daisy Pak feels that it was wrong for people to blame the bamboo scaffolding for the Wang Fuk Court fire, as it has a slow burning rate. He said bamboo is easier to handle than steel and easier to cut into different lengths.
Ho Ping-tak, chairman of the Hong Kong and Kowloon Bamboo Scaffolding Workers Union, does not believe that bamboo scaffolding was the source or the main driver of the fire at Wang Fuk Court last year.
Instead he pointed to the use of non-compliant construction materials, windows sealed with foam tapes, non-combustible scaffolding nets, workers smoking on site, simultaneous hacking of eight towers, malfunctioning alarms and ineffectiveness of regulatory authorities.
At least 44 people have died after a fire broke out in an apartment in Hong Kong, and another 45 are in critical condition, police said. Resident Adler Suen tells Hanomansing Tonight that it was the smoke, not the fire alarm, that pulled him out of the blaze.
“This incident underscores the urgent need to address deficiencies in risk management, property standards, construction quality, legal accountability and protecting citizens’ basic right to safety,” he said.
Hong Kong still has about 2,500 people registered as bamboo scaffolding professionals, according to official statistics. But the number of steel scaffolders is three times that.
“We have assessed that the number of bamboo scaffolds used in new construction sites will decrease significantly in the next one to two years,” said Ho.
Pak said that even before the fire started, the government had started to cut down the bamboo scaffolding.
“Compared to when I started in this industry in 2021, they use less bamboo … and they have fewer jobs now,” he said.
Bamboo is ‘less hungry’ than steel
Swiss architect Raffaella Endrizzi, who researches bamboo scaffolding and teaches at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, said the density of buildings in Hong Kong is made possible by bamboo.
“The lack of land is real, and bamboo does not take up more space than steel,” he said.
Ho said the advantage of bamboo scaffolding on construction sites in Hong Kong lies in its high flexibility, cost-effectiveness and flexibility – and that it can be erected quickly.
Simon Liu, president of the Hong Kong Construction Association, who has worked in the industry for 40 years, acknowledges the benefits of bamboo. But he supports a wider movement of steel.
“Metal scaffolding uses a robust engineering design method. It is safer and more durable. After it is built, it can last for one to two years and is less sensitive to weather disturbances,” he said.
He believes that the government will still allow bamboo scaffolding in some cases, such as renovation of an old building.
With new buildings being built, Liu is already seeing a move to steel scaffolding and expects it to continue over the next few years.
Steel lasts a long time, says prof
Robert Crawford at the University of Melbourne said that while steel construction is more expensive up front and produces more carbon emissions, steel is more durable than bamboo.
“You have to consider the long-term effects. Is it actually cheaper in the long run, because you don’t have to replace it as often? In the end, it can last for decades, actually, if it’s taken care of and treated properly,” he said.
“Obviously, from a fire standpoint, steel is going to be better than bamboo in that context, but I think a lot of it is about avoiding or reducing the chance of a fire in the first place.”
Kent A. Harries, a professor of architectural engineering at the University of Pittsburgh, said that until the building boom in the Middle East and Dubai, some of the most impressive buildings in the world were built in Hong Kong using bamboo scaffolding, pointing to the Bank of China building.
He said bamboo has been the “ideal solution” for Hong Kong and nearby Macau for decades, and there have been communities and industries built around it.
“Bamboo scaffolding is very artisanal. That being said, that knowledge base will disappear, and bamboo scaffolding will eventually disappear, because you can’t maintain the skill set needed,” he said.
Pak said some of his colleagues were considering changing jobs.
“Making bamboo scaffolding is a tradition from ancient times until now, so I think we still have a lot to learn about bamboo cutting techniques,” he said. “Metal scaffolding does not have the spirit of bamboo scaffolding.”
Although Pak already has a license to work in steel, he hopes that bamboo can stay in Hong Kong.
“I will continue to work [with the material] as long as possible.”
