At least 18 people were killed and another 18 were injured in a fire at a foot massage parlour in China on Sunday. Authorities have detained people in charge of the parlour on Monday.
The fire started at around 5.26 pm local time (9.26 am GMT) Sunday at Zuxintang Parlour in Zhejiang province's Tiantai county, Xinhua news agency reported.
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At least eight people lost their lives in the fire, which lasted for about two hours, and 10 others succumbed to their injuries at the hospital.
Videos of the incident were circulated on Chinese social media website Wirbo, which showed black smoke emanating from the massage parlour and people jumping out of the second-floor window of the six-storey building to save themselves from the flames.
"Windows in the third and fourth floor, where residents lived, were also shattered," Beijing News quoted a witness as saying.
The exact reason behind the fire is yet to be ascertained. Local police and fire departments are investigating the incident.
#BREAKING At least 18 dead, 2 injured after fire broke out Sunday in foot spa in China's Zhejiang Province pic.twitter.com/d1OQi06TMj
— CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) February 5, 2017
China is dismal when it comes to workplace safety standards and prioritises business and its profits above all else. Recent industrial disasters in the country include an explosion at a hazardous material warehouse in the eastern city of Tianjin in August 2015 that killed at least 114 people.
#BREAKING Casualties reported after fire breaks out at a foot spa in Tiantai county, E China’s Zhejiang Province (Xinhua) pic.twitter.com/KNivLRsQSU
— CGTN (@CGTNOfficial) February 5, 2017
