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Death toll rises to 120 in NE China fire
The death toll from a fire at a poultry factory in northeast China's Jilin Province had risen to 120 as of 8 pm Monday, with another 70 injured, according to the rescue headquarters.

Poultry plant fire kills 119
A fire at a poultry slaughterhouse in Changchun, Northeast China's Jilin Province, has killed at least 119 people, prompting public calls for a thorough probe into the cause of the heavy fatalities.

Details

Time	6:06 am, June 3, 2013
Location	Dehui, Changchun, Jilin Province
Company	Baoyuanfeng Poultry Company
Death toll	120
Economic losses	3 million yuan ($489,000)
Fire scene	The slaughterhouse has a total six gates. Gates 1 and 2 are only open at the beginning and end of shifts, but remain closed during work hours, while gates 3 and 4 to the office areas are always open. Gate 5 is the entrance to cold storage, which is often open during work hours, while the exit at gate 6 remains closed. The fire first broke out in the second workshop. As the fire spread, workers could only escape from gates 3, 4 and 5.
Rescue	Local government have dispatched 67 fire engines, over 500 firefighters, 61 ambulances and over 270 medical personnel to the scene, searching an area covering 17,000 square meters.
Leaders' instructions	President Xi Jinping has given instructions to rescuers to do everything they can to save any injured survivors. Premier Li Keqiang has said that rescue work must come first.

Photos

Comments

Xinhua News Agency: Deadly fire sparks work safety concerns
The sprawling expansion of cities has brought more plants closer to the residential areas, posing safety hazards to the populace. In addition, the development of China's work safety measures has lagged behind the growth of its economy.

To avoid more tragedies, experts said safety rules must be followed strictly. In the meantime, workplace supervision must be fully carried out in order to protect workers' lives

Xinhua News Agency: Workplace tragedies challenge "Safe China"

Companies that violate the law and officials who neglect their duties deserve harsh punishment. Regulations should not be put aside and laws should be abided by.

Only by doing this can citizens truly enjoy a happy and healthy life, as well as the fruits of the development they have helped make a reality. The victories that China's leaders have scored so far in reforming the country will be lost if they cannot live up to the people's high expectations.

Xinhua News Agency: Lessons we must learn

We must find out whether there is a connection between the three disasters in Northeast China over the past two days, namely the barn fire on June 2 in Lindian county, Heilongjiang Province, the oil tank blast on June 3 in Dalian, Liaoning Province and poultry plant fire on June 3 in Changchun, Jilin Province.

The problem is we need to think of safety and break the cycle of correcting mistakes only after accidents occur. While such changes may affect profits, China’s growth will be more manageable in the long run.    

The Beijing News: Way to safety should never be blocked
These three fires have raised public concern over public safety. It is no doubt that enterprises should be directly responsible, but in the end the government departments are to blame. After all, managing and ensuring public safety is the government’s basic responsibility.

Background

Recent safety incidents
Time	Incidents
June 2	An oil tank explosion in neighboring Liaoning Province left two people dead and another two missing. The tank, containing diesel oil residue, exploded at around 2:20pm at a PetroChina outlet in the port city of Dalian, causing a nearby tank to burst into flames.
May 31	In Heilongjiang Province, north of Jilin, fire raged through a large grain storage center, causing tremendous economic losses but no casualties. The blaze, in Huayuan Township in Lindian County, was first spotted at one barn around 1:15pm. Strong winds and high temperatures helped it spread to another 80 barns.

Serious fire hazards in China
Time	Place	Death toll	Cause	More
Jun. 30, 2012	Ji county, Tianjin	10	electric short circuit	Police penalized a few netizens who spread rumors on more deaths in the fire and fabricated quotes of witnesses on the Internet.
May 1, 2011	Tonghua, Jilin	10	setting fire	Three people responsible for the fire were executed Thursday.
Apr. 25, 2011	Daxing county, Beijing	18	a short circuit	Poor safety conditions in the building and its surrounding neighborhood were blamed for hindering people from escaping and for delaying the rescue work.
Nov. 15, 2010	Shanghai	58	welding work	A district official in charge of the construction was sentenced to 16 years in jail.

News Vocab

公共安全 gōnggòng ānquán public security

“公共安全” refers ensuring the safety and security of the general public, as well public and private property.

Example:

目前各政府部门已经建立起公共安全信息系统。（source: 赛迪网）

So far all government departments have already established a public security information system.

Web Editor: yangruoyu@globaltimes.com.cn