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Chinese President Xi Jinping has made important instructions following a fire at a shoe factory in Jinjiang City under Quanzhou City, east China's Fujian Province, urging all-out efforts to carry out search and rescue operations, identify the cause of the accident and hold those responsible strictly accountable, Xinhua News Agency reported on Thursday. 

The fire broke out at around 12 pm on Thursday, causing major casualties, according to Xinhua.

A total of 183 firefighters and 35 fire engines were sent to the scene. As of now, the open flames have now been extinguished, and the exact cause is still under investigation. Firefighters said that a large amount of clutter had been piled up in the factory building's stairwells, severely hampering firefighting efforts and hindering rescue operations, according to China Central Television (CCTV) News in its latest coverage of the development. 

Earlier, firefighters rushed to the factory of the Huiteng Shoe Industry Co., Ltd in Chendai town shortly after the fire, but as of 3:20 pm on Thursday, rescuers were still unable to enter the burning building as operations to extinguish the blaze and locate missing individuals continued, Xinhua reported. 

According to a report from CCTV News, the fire has resulted in casualties. And following the incident, China's Ministry of Emergency Management has demanded that all resources be mobilized to extinguish the fire, immediately verify the casualty situation, and make effort to rescue those still trapped while providing urgent medical treatment to the injured. 

A joint working group has been dispatched to the site to oversee rescue operations, according to CCTV News.  

Jinjiang is one of China's leading footwear manufacturing hubs and the world's production base for sports shoes. According to official records, Jinjiang's footwear and apparel industry generated an annual output value exceeding 250 billion yuan ($36.74 billion) in 2024, with annual sports shoe production surpassing 1.2 billion pairs — accounting for 20 percent of global output. 

The city is home to more than 7,000 footwear manufacturers and upstream and downstream supporting enterprises, forming a complete industrial chain and production ecosystem.

Global Times