Key facts
- A fire at a shoe factory in Fujian province, China, resulted in 37 deaths and 19 injuries.
- The factory was reportedly operating without a license and had illegally combined work, storage, and living spaces.
- The fire is believed to have been caused by an electrical wire igniting.
- The owners of the factory have been detained by authorities.
- This incident is one of the deadliest industrial accidents in China this year.
A fire at an unlicensed shoe factory in Putian, Fujian province, killed 37 people and injured 19, according to Chinese authorities. The blaze, which broke out Sunday night, was likely caused by an electrical wire igniting in a workshop making shoe uppers.
Authorities stated that 56 workers were present at the time of the fire, which spread across 520 square meters. The factory reportedly combined work, storage, and living areas within the same building, a violation that had led to its license being revoked in 2004, though conflicting reports suggest it may have been operating with a license but had been warned about safety conditions.
The owners of the factory, a husband and wife team, have been detained by police as an investigation is ongoing. This incident marks one of the deadliest industrial accidents in China this year, a country where safety violations are common in factories, leading to thousands of deaths annually from fires, explosions, and other accidents.
Separately, a fireworks plant in Chongqing municipality exploded on the same Sunday, killing 16 people and injuring 15, with one person missing.