2010 Shanghai fire

The fire began at 14:15 local time (06:15 UTC) around the tenth floor. The building, constructed in 1997, and was being renovated at the time of the fire. Shanghai residents were able to see smoke from the fire several kilometres away. Firefighters were unable to hose water on the top of the -tall building from the ground. It is remembered as an iconic high-rise fire in China in the 2010s. Qiu Jingshu, a worker on the 18th floor, said sparks from welding being done on another building flew over and caused the scaffolding to catch fire. Afterward, it was "established" that the fire "was caused by unlicensed welders improperly operating their equipment", and several welders were arrested. Rescue efforts Firefighters were able to save over 100 people out of the 180 families inhabiting the high-rise apartment building. Xinhua News Agency said the fire was contained at about 6:30 p.m. local time (10:30 UTC), more than four hours after it began. but were prevented by thick smoke generated by the fire. The upper portion of the building was beyond the reach of fire apparatus; the blaze was brought under control only after firefighters set up hoses atop a nearby building. Television coverage of the event showed people holding on to scaffolding around the building, and some were able to climb down to safety. One worker on the 28th floor said that workers were adding insulation to the building when the fire broke out. Victims not in hospitals, as well as evacuees from three surrounding city blocks, were sent to public buildings, including a school and a stadium, until their housing situation could be addressed. ==Casualties==

The building housed around 440 people, Most of the injured appeared to be elderly residents or children, A firefighter said that 57 of the 58 killed had died inside the building. Earliest reports put the death toll at eight, but Xinhua later revised the count several times, and then confirmed 53 deaths by 16 November. 26 bodies were identified using DNA tests. Some media outlets reported 79 fatalities by adding the number of identified victims to the number of previously reported fatalities, although Xinhua later said that the 26 identified were included amongst the 53. while 56 people remained missing. Of the deceased, 57 were identified by DNA tests early on, while one male, from Japan, was still being identified when the official death count was released. State media reports said the hospital was treating 55 survivors, including nine in serious condition. He claimed that the actual death toll was two more than the official count, but authorities did not provide access to the list of casualties. ==Response==

Investigation Meng Jianzhu, the Minister of Public Security, went to Shanghai to manage rescue operations. After the flames were extinguished, the Shanghai Municipal Government held a press conference about the damage caused by the fire. Liu Jinguo, Vice Minister of Public Security, described the firefighting as "a successful model", leading to a dispute by Chinese netizens. Later in the week of the fire, government officials began a drive to increase fire and safety inspections at buildings and construction sites. Week-long safety inspections were done on the two other buildings of the apartment complex, both of which were unharmed. The several hundred people living in those buildings were expected to be allowed to move back on 20 December 2010. Until then, the survivors would live in 17 nearby hotels. According to Ming Pao, family members of the victims were dissatisfied with the official investigation and held a sit-in protest, calling for a fair judgement. Some locals blamed the official rescue work by comparing it with a large emergency response exercise on a 330-meter building several days before, and the successful firefighting for a blaze at Shanghai World Financial Center in 2007. Others blamed an ineffective firefighting system for the high death toll, and were dissatisfied that they were not given more details about the fire. In Beijing, authorities halted renovation projects similar to the one being done on the apartment in Shanghai shortly after the blaze. The projects, intended to save energy by installing insulation, were stopped on 19 November, pending safety evaluations of the work. The insulation is still flammable, despite the use of fire retardants. Shanghai officials temporarily stopped such renovations after the fire, but later allowed them to resume. On 20 December 2010, the mayor of Shanghai, Han Zheng, said that the city would crack down on unfair practices of construction companies and contracting firms. Han said that there is little regulation of the construction industry and that certain companies have had advantages over other companies when being awarded contracts. On 11 January 2011, Shanghai authorities placed into effect a new set of regulations aimed at better official supervision of construction companies. The city will also require that such companies will not be permitted to have any non-official relationship with local government offices after one year. Some media organizations had been questioning the connections between Jing'an District's government and the contracting groups involved in the fire, leading to accusations of corruption. Compensation On 23 November, it was announced that the families of each victim of the fire would receive 960,000 yuan in compensation for the ordeal. The compensation would include 650,000 yuan for every death and 310,000 yuan in financial assistance from the government and charities. Zhang Renliang, the top official of Jing'an District, said that Shanghai residents and foreign workers would be compensated equally. Survivors of the blaze would be fully compensated for the loss of possessions and property. Some who lost relatives in the disaster, however, were not satisfied with the announcement. They said that the compensation plan was not enough to pay for another apartment in the district, and that they would rather have a new apartment than the money. Media censorship allegations Hong Kong-based Sing Tao Daily and Singapore-based Lianhe Zaobao reported that four journalists from Xinjing News (新京报), China Daily, Reuters and a local newspaper were detained for one hour as security forces demanded a guarantee for positive news coverage by the journalists, before they were to interview families of the victims at a funeral parlour. The reporters wrote about their detainment on two websites. ==Responsibility==

Han Zheng said on 22 November that the city was largely responsible for the disaster. He said, "Poor supervision of the city's construction industry was one of the causes behind the high-rise apartment building fire. And we are responsible for that." was formed under the PRC State Council to look into the incident. Many details about the "November 15 Relief and Rehabilitation Working Team" have not been publicly announced. The investigation into the fire made a preliminary conclusion that negligence by unlicensed welders on the tenth floor caused the bamboo scaffolding and attached nylon netting to catch fire, which subsequently spread to the entire structure. Shanghai authorities detained eight individuals on 16 November, at least four of whom were accused of being unlicensed welders. As of 19 November, a total of twelve individuals were being held by officials in connection to the blaze, On 24 December 2010, Shanghai officials announced that three government employees had been taken into custody in connection with the fire. Those detained were accused of abusing their authority to permit illicit construction practices to occur. The three were reported to be Gao Weizhong, director of Jing'an's construction and transportation commission; Zhang Quan, of the commission's main office; and Zhou Jianmin, of the organization's construction department. In a 24 November press conference, local authorities said that the two apartments next to the destroyed building would be renovated as well, and that foam cladding on their exteriors would be switched out in favor of fire-resistant materials. ==Public mourning==

Local citizens put flowers and wreaths near the site, and offered prayers around the destroyed building. Mourners, including Government officials, came bearing chrysanthemums. At one point, the crowd stretched around down the road. The seventh day after death is the day that Chinese people believe the souls of the dead return to their relatives before departing, and mourners at the site burned paper and made a feast for the deceased, in accordance with Chinese tradition. During the event, the Shanghai Symphony Orchestra played "Ave Maria" and monks recited sūtras at a local temple. ==See also==

Notes References ==External links==