Fire in China mall leaves 6 dead, dozens rescued
5:51 PM EDT, July 17, 2024
A tragic fire occurred in Zigong, China. The fire broke out in a shopping mall. At least six people are dead, and others are still trapped inside. A rescue operation is underway at the scene.
The fire started on Wednesday around 6 PM Eastern Time (12 PM in Poland). It broke out in a shopping mall in Zigong, southeastern China. State television CCTV reported that flames appeared between the ground floor and the fifth floor. Currently, it is known that there are six fatalities.
Approximately 30 other people were rescued from the shopping complex. CCTV reports that some people are still trapped inside. Search and rescue operations are continuing.
Videos shared on social media show thick black smoke rising from the building.
Other videos shared on social media show people gathered in front of the burning building. Fire trucks and ambulances could be seen nearby.
Fire in the shopping mall in China. Was the law at fault?
Fires and other fatal accidents are common in China due to lax safety standards and weak enforcement of regulations.
In January, dozens of people died after a fire broke out in a store in the central city of Xinyu. The Xinhua news agency reported that the fire was caused by the "illegal" use of fire by workers in the store's basement.
At that time, Chinese President Xi Jinping called for lessons to be learned from this tragedy to prevent similar incidents in the future.
In the same month, a fire in a residential building killed at least 15 people. It occurred just a few days after a late-night fire at a school in Henan province in central China, which killed 13 children sleeping in a dormitory.
Last year, a fire at a hospital in Beijing claimed 29 victims, forcing desperate patients to jump out of windows to escape.
