Two fires, including a huge blaze at a crowded shopping centre, killed more than 90 people on Sunday, battering China’s already dire safety reputation.
At least 54 people died in the inferno at the Zhongbai Commercial Plaza in Jilin, northeast China, which started during a busy Sunday lunchtime.
Shoppers, bundled in thick winter coats, jumped to safety from the second floor, but many of those trapped on higher levels — which housed public baths and a billiard hall — were unable to escape the smoke and flames. At least 60 people were injured, many with broken limbs.
Fang Wanyou, a city government spokesperson, said: ”Shoppers on the second floor where the fire started were pretty lucky because they were able to run away.”
The blaze is believed to have started in a temporary storehouse. Police are questioning 36 people, including the centre’s security officers and a worker in the boiler room.
Fang added: ”It was an especially large fire. The cause is still being investigated.”
The building was crowded with weekend shoppers, Xinhua news agency said. It said it took about 260 firefighters more than four hours to extinguish the blaze.
Many of the dead were shop assistants, and firefighters were among the injured, Fang said. He added that it was not clear why the fire had been able to spread so quickly.
Built in the 1990s, the shopping centre accommodated 111 shops and took up an area around 4 000 square metres.
An official at the Central Hospital in Jilin said on Sunday night that many of the injured suffered from smoke inhalation or had shattered their legs as they hit the ground after leaping.
”There are many leg injuries because they jumped,” he said. ”As it was Sunday the mall was packed with weekend shoppers.”
Within hours, a second fire claimed at least 39 lives at a temple in Haining city, in the north-western province of Zhejiang. The dead were pilgrims worshipping at the temple, according to Xinhua.
The two blazes are believed to be the worst in China this year, though the country has been plagued by deadly accidents. Earlier this month, 37 Beijingers were killed in a stampede during a festival for the new year.
At the end of December, 243 people died after a gas blowout in Chongqing released a toxic cloud over nearby villages.
President Hu Jintao and other Chinese leaders have promised to put safety high on the political agenda. They have also vowed to improve standards for workers and consumers.
However with the priority on economic growth, the temptation to cut corners is often overwhelming for employers, owners of buildings and local governments.
But repeated crackdowns and threats to punish negligent officials appear to be having little effect. The latest official statistics show that the number of people killed in industrial accidents last year was 9% higher than in 2002. – Guardian Unlimited Â