[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] The fire that broke out on the afternoon of the 16th in a 42-story high-rise building in Changsha City, Hunan Province, China, has been pointed out as a man-made disaster caused by loopholes in regulations.
The British Guardian reported the high-rise building fire in Changsha City, stating that in China, related laws such as fire safety and building codes are insufficient and law enforcement is lax, resulting in many deaths from large-scale fires.
It also pointed out that the common illegal and irregular practices in China, such as starting construction before obtaining building permits or people moving into buildings before usage approval is completed, are fueling the risk of fires.
It also reported a previous case in July last year where a fire at a warehouse in northeastern Jilin Province, China, resulted in at least 15 deaths and 25 injuries.
In June of the same year, a fire at a martial arts school in Henan Province caused 18 deaths, most of whom were infants and youths.
In 2017, a large fire in a migrant area in Beijing killed more than 20 people, and in 2010, a fire in a 28-story high-rise apartment in Shanghai resulted in 49 deaths.
The analysis suggests that the extremely inadequate related laws and the practice of lax approvals and 'safety negligence' have provided the grounds for these tragedies.
According to Chinese local media such as CCTV, a large fire broke out around 3:30 p.m. that day in a 42-story high-rise building housing the offices of the state-owned telecommunications company China Telecom.
The flames, believed to have started on the building's exterior wall, spread throughout the building, with flames and smoke covering the exterior and rising into the sky.
CCTV reported, "Thick smoke was rising at the scene, and dozens of floors were fiercely ablaze." Numerous videos taken by citizens who witnessed the situation were uploaded on social media, showing fragments of the burning building's exterior falling to the ground and dozens of people escaping the building.
Local media reported that the fire department deployed 36 fire trucks and 280 firefighters to the scene, and the fire was extinguished in about an hour.
China Telecom stated, "The fire is presumed to have started on the building's exterior wall, and the cause of the fire is currently under investigation," adding, "There have been no casualties so far."
The China Telecom building where the fire occurred is 218 meters tall, with 42 floors above ground and 2 basement levels, located near the urban expressway.
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