IN BRIEF (Page 4)

Shanxi

Deadly forest fire started by farmer

A forest blaze that killed six firefighters in Shanxi province last week started after a fire lit by a farmer raged out of control, authorities said on Sunday. The farmer from Dongwangyong village, Qinyuan county, was surnamed Huo, a source in the provincial Forest Public Security Bureau said. The fire broke out at around 3:35 pm on Thursday. More than 2,000 people were dispatched to battle the blaze. At about 5 pm, seven firefighters became trapped because of a sudden change in wind direction. They were rescued and taken to hospital, but six of them died early Friday morning. The fire was extinguished by about 6:40 pm on Thursday.