In brief
A fire exploded at the Huiteng Footwear factory in Jinjiang, China’s top shoe producer, causing at least 28 deaths and many injuries. The blaze began around noon on Thursday and was surrounded by towering black smoke, according to footage released by Xinhua. President Xi Jinping condemned the incident, demanding strict accountability for those responsible. Authorities seized company employees and froze a corporate account, underscoring the heightened focus on fire safety after past disasters in Hong Kong.
A fire at a shoe factory in Jinjiang, the southeastern Chinese city known as the country’s “shoe capital”, has killed at least 28 people, state media reports.
Video footage posted by Xinhua shows dense black smoke billowing from the building, with rescuers attempting to reach trapped workers on the roof.
President Xi Jinping condemned the blaze as a “major casualty incident” and called for strict accountability against those responsible.
Jinjiang, situated in Fujian province, is reputed for producing roughly 20% of the world’s sports shoes, making this tragedy a blow to a key industrial hub.
The fire erupted at the Huiteng Footwear factory around noon local time (05:00 BST) on Thursday. Hundreds of rescuers rushed to the site, according to CCTV, and more than 200 employees had been evacuated.
The cause is believed to have started on the factory’s ground floor, where flammable materials were stored. Authorities have detained several factory staff and froze the firm’s bank account.
China has intensified fire‑prevention campaigns following past tragedies, notably the November blaze that devastated Hong Kong apartment buildings and killed 168 people.
