Ten dead, nine injured in apartment fire in China's Xinjiang: State media
Pedestrians walk past a police station in Urumqi, the capital of China's far west Xinjiang region on Apr 21, 2021. (Photo: AP/Dake Kang)
BEIJING: A fire in an apartment building in northwestern China's Xinjiang region has killed 10 people and injured nine, authorities said on Friday (Nov 25).
The blaze broke out in a high-rise building in the regional capital of Urumqi on Thursday night, state news agency Xinhua said, at about 1150 GMT (7.50pm, Singapore time). The blaze took around three hours to extinguish.
"Ten people died despite emergency treatment," Xinhua reported.
"The injuries sustained by nine others are not life-threatening," it added, saying an investigation into the fire had begun.
The tragedy comes days after 38 people died in a fire at an industrial trading company in central China caused by welding sparks that ignited cotton cloth.
Four people have been detained over the fire in the city of Anyang and local authorities ordered sweeping safety inspections.
Ageing infrastructure, poor safety awareness and, in some cases, government corruption have led to a series of recent fires, explosions and building collapse around China, which continues to grapple with new COVID-19 outbreaks, prompting lockdowns and rigid travel restrictions affecting millions of people.
