It could be months before some residents in the Marco Polo condominium tower are able to return to their homes following Friday’s tragic fire.

A preliminary estimate was made Monday that 30 to 40 condo units in the Kapiolani Boulevard high-rise sustained “severe” damage that included burn damage to units above and water damage to units below the 26th floor, where the fire broke out and destroyed several adjacent units. Three people died in the fire.

Andrew Fortin, senior vice president of external affairs for Associa, a company that manages Marco Polo for owners, provided the severe property damage estimate but said it has not been determined how many of those units will be inhabitable. He said fire inspectors are still trying to complete their work and that insurance adjusters will need to assess damage before repairs can be made.

Fortin said building managers are trying to convey information about access and how residents can proceed with repairs as quickly as it is available. “We are working literally around the clock,” he said.

Updates are being provided to residents on the Marco Polo condo website, Associa Hawaii’s Facebook account and printed postings in the building lobby.

On Friday, 110 Marco Polo residents registered to use a temporary Hawaii Red Cross shelter set up at ‘Iolani School on the day the fire raged, though only 11 people stayed overnight. Still, some remain displaced, and they could face a long road ahead for making repairs and residing once again in their homes.

In 2013 the president of the board of directors of the Marco Polo association of apartment owners advised residents in a newsletter that it could be six to 12 months before a unit gutted by fire can be made livable again. That newsletter followed two fires in the building in previous years.

The 2013 newsletter also noted that insurance premiums for the association’s master policy, which covers common areas that typically end with the walls of each apartment, doubled after more than 20 insurance companies declined to consider providing coverage in the wake of the two fires and an increasing number of water leak claims in the 36-story tower with 568 residential units.

In 2015 the Marco Polo association required all unit owners to carry individual homeowner insurance policies that can cover personal property, including upgrades to interior finishes as well as furniture and household goods. Homeowner insurance policies also can cover hotel expenses for displaced residents.

Fortin said Associa is helping Marco Polo owners with the recovery process as fast as possible. But processing insurance claims and getting repairs done takes time.

Following an October 2014 fire in the building that was caused when a pressure washer owned and operated by a contractor to clean a trash chute ignited and burned a hallway and stairwell area on the 35th floor, necessary repairs included removing asbestos from the ceiling and under carpeting. The last stage of remediation work in that incident was completed in June 2015.