Mixed reaction among Wang Fuk Court returnees

Emotions were mixed among Wang Fuk Court residents who returned home to collect their belongings on Sunday, the second to last day of the first round of homecoming. A woman, surnamed Tse, said the three hours given to her family was enough to take everything they wanted from their Wang Shing House flat. She said they only took a few things of sentimental value, and won't really miss their ruined home. "We won't go up for a second time again. There's nothing else to pack up, we didn't take away many things," she told reporters. "It's hard to come back to live here again. It would be like going through a nightmare again. And you'd have to wait for like more than 10 years, why bother?" Another woman, surnamed Ho, was noticeably upset by how badly damaged her flat was, saying she's packed about a third of her belongings in 21 large bags and plans to make another trip back. "My friend told me it's time to declutter and say goodbye, but that made me feel upset," she told reporters. The government has indicated that arrangements will be made for those who want to return to their fire-hit flats a second time. Other families, meanwhile, still held out hope that officials would rebuild the estate on-site. One man living in the same block, surnamed Liu, said his home was largely untarnished by the blaze. He saw his bed looked the same before the fire, and his nephew's homework was still lying on the desk. He also said it's regrettable and disappointing if they won't be allowed to live there again. "We've lived here for more than three decades after all. Now that we're forced to leave, we're not very happy. "Why can't [the authorities] renovate the place to allow us to live here again? Or they can rebuild the place, I can wait for nine, 10 years to live here again." The government has said that it does not plan to rebuild Wang Fuk Court on-site, citing cost-effectiveness and technical difficulties. Edited by Edmond Fong