Fire at Chinese shoe factory causes "heavy casualties", says President Xi

Beijing - A fire at a shoe factory in China on Thursday resulted in “heavy casualties”, according to President Xi Jinping. Nearly 200 firefighters and rescue workers were mobilised, according to official authorities and media.

The fire broke out around midday (4am GMT) at the Huiteng factory in Jinjiang, in the Fujian province (south-east of the country), the Ministry of Emergency Management said in a statement.

Local fire and rescue teams dispatched 183 people and 35 vehicles, according to the ministry. It had mentioned people trapped in the building and “victims” but did not specify the number of dead or injured.

The disaster caused “heavy casualties”, Xi Jinping stated more clearly on Thursday evening. He was quoted by the Xinhua News Agency but did not provide a specific death toll.

Live images broadcast by state television CCTV showed firefighters spraying water on a multi-storey white and blue building. The structure was blackened by the flames, with thick grey smoke billowing from its windows.

“Every effort must be made for the search and rescue operations; to support the families; to quickly determine the causes of the incident; and to strictly establish accountability,” Xi Jinping also stressed.

The Ministry of Emergency Management stated that the fire was being brought under control. It demanded “maximum” efforts to extinguish it completely, search for those still trapped, and treat the injured.

Some people remained trapped in the factory and were unreachable, reported the Xinhua News Agency.

China launched a campaign against fire hazards in high-rise buildings in November, after a huge fire engulfed several residential towers in Hong Kong, killing 168 people.

Just one month later, a fire in a residential building in the Guangdong province in southern China killed 12 people.