18 people die after fire breaks out in martial arts training centre in China
Sign up now: Get insights on Asia's fast-moving developments
Follow topic:
BEIJING (REUTERS) - A fire tore through a martial arts training centre in China's Henan province on Friday (June 25), killing at least 18 people, local authorities said.
The blaze, which broke out at 3am, was extinguished, the Zhecheng county government said on its website.
It was unclear what caused the fire, which injured 16 people, with four in a serious condition, the authorities added.
The person in charge of the centre - which was not named - was detained by the police, according to the statement.
Outbreaks of fire in China are common, with patchy safety protocols and sub-standard construction a frequent concern.
On June 13, a gas pipeline explosion in central Hubei province killed 25 people and injured 138.
Eight employees at a gas supplier were arrested by police after lapses in safety management were uncovered.
In one of Henan province's most horrific fires, 309 people died in the city of Luoyang on Christmas Day in 2000 at a nightclub.
Smoke suffocated most of the victims in the dance hall, which had only two emergency exits and no sprinklers or smoke alarms.
