Firefighters brought a deadly inferno that had broken out in downtown Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, under control yesterday after a more than 20-hour struggle that claimed the lives of at least three firefighters and injured another.
The fire, which broke out in a 12-story wholesale market at 8:20 pm on Wednesday, had spread to a three-star hotel next door.
Sixty-three firefighting vehicles and 236 firefighters from Urumqi and adjacent cities were dispatched to fight the blaze.
They were helped by more than 1,000 police, who acted as a rescue force by providing first aid.
Flames and heavy smoke could still be seen pouring from the buildings late last night.
A lack of equipment could hamper the effort to extinguish the blaze. Water was reportedly being transported from neighboring regions.
In one stroke of good fortune, there has been little wind since the fire started.
Official sources said the final casualty toll would be difficult to pinpoint until the fire is completely extinguished.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but a security guard at the building said it broke out in the basement.
Traffic and public transportation was diverted away from the scene yesterday, an Urumqi resident who lives near market said.
The market is very close to the city's railway station.
Also, thousands of guests and staff at the neighboring International Trade Hotel and Xinqi Plaza had to be evacuated, sources said.
The wholesale market opened in 2003. It is part of a complex that includes a three-star hotel and a restaurant.
More than 2,000 vendors sell daily necessities, children's clothes, toys, cosmetics and other goods in the 100,000 sq m Dehui International Plaza.
The complex is owned by Qian Jinnai, a tycoon from Zhejiang Province.
He spent 380 million yuan ($52 million) refurbishing the complex in 2001.
Source: China Daily
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