Today Hong Kong celebrates Ching Ming (清明), also known as the Tomb Sweeping Festival. This is the day where families traditionally visit the columbarium, graves, or hillside burial grounds and pray to their ancestors. Tombs and headstones are cleaned and tidied up, and offerings of tea, food, and joss paper accessories are made by young and old alike.

The burning of paper offerings at hillside gravesites often lead to bush fires every year due to carelessness and untended fires. This year, windy conditions combined with the hottest Ching Ming day on record (30 degrees Celcius) resulted in over 100 hill fires all over Hong Kong. I spotted two of them from my home near the North Lantau Highway. Luckily most of the fires tend to burn themselves out, but could easily escalate into major disasters. They sure are pretty, though!