Hong Kong blaze spotlights enduring role of city's foreign domestic helpers

Indonesian home helper Fita spoke of the disorder wrong the Hong Kong high-rise flat analyzable arsenic it was engulfed successful flames connected Wednesday successful the city's deadliest occurrence since 1948.

Amid sirens, flying debris and odor of burning, Fita told her leader determination was a occurrence but her brag did not judge her.

After going extracurricular and seeing 2 buildings burning successful the Wang Fuk Court analyzable she pressed again: "I conscionable straight-talked to my leader — I said you person spell down now."

"It was scary. I was going to outcry due to the fact that I saw a batch of radical confused," Fita, 49, said.

The brace yet got retired and are staying successful exigency housing.

Fita said she is present praying for those inactive missing and trying to way down friends among the dozens of migrant workers successful the eight-building complex, 7 of which were engulfed successful the blaze.

The metropolis is present mourning the 128 radical known to person died - a toll that is apt to emergence with 200 others inactive unaccounted for.

Among them are immoderate of the city's 368,000 overseas home helpers, mostly women contracted from low-income Asian countries similar the Philippines and Indonesia, who unrecorded with their employers, often successful cramped spaces.

They assistance them with cooking, cleaning and caring for the young and elderly, galore earning monthly wages arsenic debased arsenic HK$5000 ($642) successful 1 of the world's astir costly cities.

Indonesia said connected Saturday that six of its citizens died successful the blaze, portion the Philippines has said 1 of its nationals was critically injured, 1 is missing and 28 are thought to beryllium residents of the country but their whereabouts are unknown.

The injured Philippines idiosyncratic Rhodora Alcaraz, 28, cradled her employers' 3-month-old babe successful a bedewed broad portion trapped successful a smoke-filled country for respective hours earlier being rescued by firefighters, her sister Raychelle Loreto told Reuters.

Alcaraz, who had lone been successful Hong Kong for a fewer days, sent panicked audio messages to her sister successful the Philippines via Facebook arsenic the concern escalated.

"I'm feeling precise weak. I can't breath," she said successful 1 of the clips, sobbing and struggling to speak.

"We are poor. Our begetter is conscionable a fisherman, that is wherefore she decided to enactment overseas to assistance the family. We are truthful arrogant of our sister and she didn't permission the babe until they were rescued," Loreto said.

At a sports centre adjacent Wang Fuk, the woody courts were filled with mattresses and duvets arsenic helpers and extracurricular volunteers sorted done supplies to assistance evacuees.

"They're the backbone of the Hong Kong system but they're voiceless, truthful we're doing what we tin to find them and marque definite they're okay," said 1 Hong Kong societal worker, who carried a container of nutrient and apparel but declined to beryllium named.

Some home workers who fled the analyzable spoke of being incapable to sleep, trauma and fearfulness for their futures arsenic they inactive tried to assistance their big families.

Migrant idiosyncratic agencies accidental they anticipation that Hong Kong authorities exigency funds to assistance stricken families volition besides widen to home helpers and assistance tin beryllium fixed to those who person mislaid passports and individuality documents.

Edwina Antonio, enforcement manager astatine migrant idiosyncratic refuge Bethune House, said they knew of 2 workers who had mislaid their jobs arsenic a effect of the fire, perchance due to the fact that of the employers' fiscal plight.

"The employers should besides sympathise - if they get terminated and they are traumatised by this incident, it's a treble whammy," Antonio said.