Pictures of Beijing's Changfeng hospital after the deadly fire: on Wednesday, one day after the fire took 21 lives, outpatient service and access to the building was suspended. Photo: Zhang Changyue/GT
Pictures of Beijing's Changfeng hospital after the deadly fire: on Wednesday, one day after the fire took 21 lives, outpatient service and access to the building was suspended. Photo: Zhang Changyue/GT
Pictures of Beijing's Changfeng hospital after the deadly fire: on Wednesday, one day after the fire took 21 lives, outpatient service and access to the building was suspended. Photo: Zhang Changyue/GT
Pictures of Beijing's Changfeng hospital after the deadly fire: on Wednesday, one day after the fire took 21 lives, outpatient service and access to the building was suspended. Photo: Zhang Changyue/GT
At least 21 people died in a fire at Beijing Changfeng Hospital on Tuesday, according to media reports.
The fire was reported at the hospital's in-patient department in Beijing's Fengtai district. The fire department in the district received report of the fire at 12:57 pm and rushed to the scene along with public security, health and emergency departments, according to the Beijing Daily on Tuesday night.
The fire was put out at 1:33 pm, and the rescue work continued till 3:30 pm. 71 patients were evacuated or transported, said the Beijing Daily.
Videos circulating online show some tumbling out of the window and waiting for rescue on the outdoor air conditioning units. Others jumped to lower rooftops.
A total of 21 deaths have been reported in the fire as of 6 pm Tuesday.
The cause of the fire is under further investigation.
The city's Party chief Yin Li and mayor Yin Yong rushed to the scene after the fire accident and urged that no effort should be spared in saving lives and treating the injured, according to Beijing Daily.
The city has set up a special working team to identify the cause of the accident, and those responsible for the accident will be held accountable in accordance with the law. Relevant departments and the hospital must carefully handle the aftermath of the victims, while also attending to the needs of other hospitalized patients. Timely release of relevant information and addressing social concerns is required.
Authorities have instructed all districts to conduct large-scale inspections to identify and eliminate potential safety hazards, preventing any significant safety incidents from occurring as the May Day holidays are approaching.
As of 9:30 pm on Tuesday, the fire in the building had been extinguished, but a lingering smell of burning was still present in the air outside the hospital, according to media reports. Traffic around the hospital has returned to normal, with several police cars stationed along the road, according to CNR News.
Several hospitals in Beijing have begun admitting injured individuals transferred from the affected hospital, according to media reports.
The hospital just held a meeting about one month ago on the deployment of fire prevention and control.
The hospital, a secondary hospital in China's three-tier hospital system, is a chain hospital that specializes in the treatment of vascular diseases, especially hemangiomas and vascular malformations, as well as other comprehensive treatment programs.
In the first half of 2022, Beijing Changfeng Hospital achieved operating revenue of approximately 253 million yuan ($46.8 million). The hospital has subsidiaries in Southwest China's Chengdu, Chongqing, Guiyang, and Central China's Zhengzhou.
Global Times
