Fire in high-rise building in northern China’s Taiyuan kills 14

At least 14 people have died after fire swept through a tall building in Taiyuan, the capital of northern China’s Shanxi province, China’s state-run Xinhua news agency said on 9 November.

The fire broke out at 4.59 p.m. local time on 8 November (2.29 p.m. IST) in a building in the centre of the city. The local Yingze district government named it as the Haosheng International Apartment building, the South China Morning Post reported.

Firefighters put out the flames about two hours later. Rescue work ended by 8.30 p.m., and 38 people were taken to hospital. Five deaths had been confirmed by late on 8 November, and the toll rose to 14 the next day.

Twenty-five people were still in hospital on the afternoon of 9 November, nine of them with serious injuries, state media said, citing the authorities. The cause of the fire is under investigation.