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Beijing: On Thursday, state media said that Eleven people have killed and after a fire tore through a building in Shanxi province of northern China. State broadcaster CCTV said, “Eleven people have been confirmed dead and the specific number of casualties is still being counted.”
The fire broke out at 6:50 a.m. at the four-story Yongju Coal Industry Joint Building in China’s top coal-producing hub of Shanxi. Other 51 people have been injured in the incident and sent to hospital for medical treatment.
It further said,”A total of 63 people have been evacuated so far, 51 of whom were sent to the Luliang First People’s Hospital for treatment”. According to the, the cause of the fire was still under investigation.
State broadcaster CCTV added, “Rescue work is still in progress and the cause of the fire is under investigation.” Video footage posted on social media site Weibo showed bright flames and thick black smoke billowing out of the building, while dozens of people stood in the parking lot watching.
By Thursday afternoon, the fire had been controlled and rescue work was ongoing, the local fire department told CCTV. Those injured were being treated in the hospital. The building shown in the video matched images of the company’s headquarters posted on its website.
The blaze appeared to have started in a building with offices and dormitories and not where coal was being mined. Emergency response personnel could be seen in the footage racing to put on protective gear outside a firetruck parked at the building’s entrance. Industrial accidents are common in China due to lax safety standards and poor enforcement.
