(Xinhua)
Updated: 2007-10-23 20:29

NANJING -- A residential building fire in Wujiang City, east China's Jiangsu Province, killed eight people on Tuesday morning.

According to local police sources, the fire broke out at 5:40 am at a two-storey building in Hengshan Township, but was put out an hour later.

There were 11 people living on the second storey when the accident occurred. Four died of suffocation at the scene after inhaling smoke, four died in hospital while three others were rescued. The ground storey of the building is occupied by a store, which was empty of people at the time of the blaze.

Local safety and police officials have launched an investigation into the blaze.

On Sunday, a shoe factory fire broke out in Fujian Province, also in east China, killing 37 workers and injuring 19 others.