Killer blast
Seventeen people, including 14 students, die in a fire and explosion at a restaurant in Anhui province caused by a gas cylinder.
Among the 17 dead in an explosion and fire at a restaurant in East China’s Anhui province at around noon on Saturday, 14 were students ages 15 to 20, local authorities said.
The Jinghu district fire department in Wuhu said that nine females and eight males died, mostly students from a nearby school. Three other men, including a father and his son, were also killed.
An initial investigation indicated a gas cylinder exploded and started a fire at the restaurant at 11:57 am.
According to State broadcaster CCTV, the restaurant opened on Aug 18 and did not have a business license.
A gas cylinder at the restaurant caught fire, and the explosion followed six minutes later, according to investigators. A witness said he heard at least
two explosions. The fire was put out in half an hour, and the 17 bodies were recovered.
Restaurant owner Zhang Baoping, 38, from Hanshan county, Anhui province, is under investigation. Zhang and his wife ran the restaurant, and both of them were
slightly injured in the blast.
Zhang said he and his wife rented the restaurant more than two months ago to sell snacks, including fried noodles. When the fire broke out, Zhang told authorities, he tried to put it out with water and a fire extinguisher.
More than 30 firefighters participated in the rescue work. An investigation into the incident continues.
Two videos purporting to show the tragedy went viral online, showing that many people tried to extinguish the fire but were unsuccessful. Flames climbed to the second floor quickly.
The restaurant is near Wuhu Vocational Middle School.
After the blast, the Wuhu education bureau’s micro blog account posted an alert requiring all education institutions to conduct safety drills.
The bureau also asked parents to warn students, hoping to keep them away from small diners with potential safety hazards.
More than 30 students from the school flocked to a medical facility in the city to donate blood on Saturday.