- Rescuers fear that more workers will be trapped inside the building.
- Blocked stairs prevent firefighters from reaching the upper floors.
- The authorities deploy 183 people and 35 rescue vehicles.
A fire that swept through a shoe factory in eastern China on Thursday killed at least 28 people, state media said, and more than 500 firefighters and rescue personnel raced against time to extinguish the blaze.
Hours after the fire broke out at the Huiteng Shoes factory around noon (0400 GMT), authorities feared people were still trapped inside the building in Jinjiang city, Fujian province.
President Xi Jinping said the fire caused “heavy human losses,” according to the state news agency. Xinhua He later cited a preliminary toll of 28 dead.
Images shared by state television. closed circuit television It showed firefighters spraying the facade and interior of a large white multi-story building with fire hoses, while thick black smoke billowed from broken windows.
People could be seen taking shelter near the windows and on the roof of the building, as the fire raged through the lower floors.
closed circuit television He said 500 firefighters and other emergency personnel were at the scene.
“The cause of the accident must be identified as soon as possible and…those responsible must be strictly held accountable,” Xi said, in remarks carried by Xinhua.
The owner of the company and several other people have been arrested. Xinhua reported. The authorities have also frozen the company's accounts.
Efforts “all”
Jinjiang is one of China's major footwear production centers and a global center for sports shoe manufacturing, according to the state-run Global Times newspaper.
The city's fire chief, Du Zhenzhou, told state media that his staff had difficulty reaching the upper levels of the building because stairs and exits were blocked with shoe materials.
He said adhesives and other raw materials used in shoe manufacturing had fueled the fire.
The fire was being extinguished, the Ministry of Emergency Management said, calling for “all-out” efforts to put it out, search for trapped survivors and treat the injured.
Some people were trapped and “out of touch”, Xinhua saying.
At the time of the fire, a total of 237 workers and two delivery drivers were in the factory. closed circuit television reported, adding that 213 people had been evacuated, but it was not immediately clear how those figures squared with the death toll.
Xi said there have been “several major industrial safety accidents” in China so far this year.
“All relevant regions and departments must draw profound lessons from these incidents,” he said, adding that they should “implement rigorous and effective security measures.”
China launched a campaign against fire risks in high-rise buildings in November after a huge fire ripped through several tower blocks in Hong Kong, killing 168 people.
A month later, a fire in a residential building in southern China's Guangdong province killed 12 people.
In May, an explosion at a fireworks factory in central China killed 37 people, marking one of the country's deadliest industrial accidents in years.
