Hazard search ordered after fire

Firefighters leave the scene of a deadly fire in Daxing district, Beijing, on Sunday morning. Thirty-four firetrucks were dispatched to fight the blaze, which started on Saturday evening and left 19 people dead and eight injured. [Feng Yongbin/China Daily]

Beijing's top official has demanded an inch-by-inch inspection for potential safety hazards after a blaze on Saturday night killed 19 people and injured eight others in Daxing district.

The fire brigade sent 34 firetrucks to an apartment fire in the village of Xinjian after being alerted at 6:15 pm on Saturday, and the fire was extinguished by about 9 pm. All the injured were hospitalized, according to local authorities.

Those thought to be responsible for the tragedy have been taken into custody, authorities said, and an investigative team has been set up to investigate the cause.

Cai Qi, Party chief of Beijing, demanded an inspection combing the capital inch-by-inch, going "village by village and compound by compound" to discover any safety hazards, a news center local authorities set up for the accident said in a statement.

Cai called for the closure of compounds used for industrial purposes and for illegal business operations in rural Beijing areas to be rooted out to ensure safety.

The scene of the blaze was cordoned off on Sunday morning and could not be reached. A man who escaped the flames said there was a garment factory in the building, which had two stories and a basement. He also said the building had more than 100 residents.

"I just came back from work for 20 minutes when choking smoke came into my room. I opened the door and found the building filled with heavy smoke," said the Heilongjiang province man in his 40s who gave his name only as Rong.

Rong said he crawled to escape after grabbing his cellphone and a coat. The smoke smelled like burning tires.

"There are two entrances to the building. I was lucky enough to choose the right one to get away - the other one was close to the fire, and there was much heavier smoke," he said.

Rong said his company, a nearby car dealer, organized regular safety trainings and what he learned in them helped him to escape. He stayed in an internet cafe that night.

Stores near the blaze have been asked to suspend business, China Daily learned and various business owners confirmed.

On Sunday morning, local authorities had begun demolishing a building near the site. "We were told at 5 am to move everything out before 8 am," said a man from Zhejiang province surnamed Lu who works in a phone store in the building.

It was not clear whether the demolition was related to the fire.

Part of the building was illegally built, and Lu previously had heard the building was to be demolished, he said, holding a bag with some packaged cellphones and dried shrimp he took from his shop.

houliqiang@chinadaily.com.cn