Authorities pledge strict probe and safety checks after Fujian factory fire

Authorities in Quanzhou, Fujian province, pledged on Friday to enforce a comprehensive safety crackdown and launch a rigorous investigation of the cause after a tragic footwear factory fire claimed 28 lives on Thursday.

"The cost of the accident is extremely painful, and the lesson is profoundly deep," said Cai Zhansheng, mayor of Quanzhou, bowing in deep apology at a press conference on Friday.

Moving forward, the government intends to prioritize hidden risk elimination, conduct a structural safety assessment of the building to prevent secondary disasters and advance compensation and counseling, he said.

The blaze engulfed a five-story concrete workshop belonging to Fujian Huiteng Shoes at around noon on Thursday in Chendai town, Jinjiang, a county-level city under Quanzhou, widely recognized as China's "shoe capital".

Following the emergency alert, the local government immediately mobilized over 500 professional rescuers from firefighting, medical, emergency management, police, and housing construction sectors.

Response teams evacuated and rescued 213 people from the burning structure, of whom two died in the hospital. Another 26 individuals were found dead on site. By 12:35 am on Friday, the rescue operation was basically completed.

Xu Zhihui, head of Quanzhou's fire and rescue bureau, said firefighters cooled the building to protect trapped workers, deployed elevating platforms to suppress the blaze from outside, and dispatched teams for nonstop internal searches.

However, Xu said, the rescue operation faced critical constraints because the affected five-story concrete-frame workshop featured a large single-floor span, while narrow surrounding roads severely restricted the operational space for vehicles with elevating platforms.

The rescue was further complicated by the fact that the factory had stored massive amounts of highly flammable materials, including shoe components and glue, leading to an instantaneous spread of high-temperature smoke and a full-scale multidimensional combustion upon the firefighters' arrival, he said.

Workers trapped on the roof faced severe threats from the blazing material stacks, while sudden shifts in wind direction during the operation further escalated escape and rescue difficulties, he added.

Amid the chaotic initial moments of the blaze, a nearby rock-climbing enthusiast joined the rescue with a ladder and ropes, successfully saving three trapped workers from danger, according to media reports.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Police have detained the owner of the footwear company and other responsible personnel, and frozen the company's accounts on Thursday.

To ensure safety and stability, Quanzhou will immediately target labor-intensive manufacturing sectors like footwear, textiles, and luggage, to eliminate underlying risks, local authorities said.

Contact the writers at zhangyi1@chinadaily.com.cn