Shanghai high-rise fire probably caused by negligent welders by Zuzana Zelenakova

28- storey building in Chinese business capital whose population amounts to almost 20 million people caught fire on November 15. High-rise that was undergoing reconstruction is situated in one of the most densely populated districts in the town. Monday, it became a place of tragedy as 53 people died in fire that started on the scaffolding´s 10th storey and quickly spread to cover the whole building. "The building was surrounded by scaffolding covered in a lot of flammable sheeting and plywood boards that caused the fire to spread to a large area in a very short time. The wind was strong and intensified the situation," said Zhu Zhixiang, a senior Shanghai fire official! . It took as much as 80 fire engines to extinguish fire of such an extent. As far as the cause of the fire is concerned that has not been confirmed yet, even though local residents claim that safety measurements on the site were often ignored and neglected by workers whose behaviour could eventually lead to such disastrous consequences. Many were seen to have been tossing used cigarettes in the building´s hallways. Officials detained four welders who were reportedly using their equipment improperly and are suspected of having accidentally started the fire. Apart from 53 dead, about 70 people were injured and transported to the hospital. 17 of them are in critical condition. "It is hard to believe the government now. The drills on TV are successful, but when a fire truly happens, it's just useless. We feel helpless," said a woman whose mother lived on the ninth floor and died in fire. "There must be something illegal in the construction materials, though we don't know.! I am waiting for the government's explanation," she said. The! buildin g´s renovation was aimed at improving its energy efficiency.

related story (sgx18611): http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/as_china_fire;_ylt=AukGwZl4957uz_...

by Zuzana Zelenakova for Cantell TV (http://cantell.tv)

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