Many Killed in Beijing fire

According to a report in the state-run Beijing Daily, a fire broke out at Beijing Changfeng Hospital in the city’s Fengtai District, killing 21 people.

Emergency response teams were informed of the fire just before 1 pm and the fire was extinguished about half an hour later. It took rescue workers approximately two more hours to evacuate 71 patients to another location. At 6 pm, the death toll was put at 21, and the cause of the fire is under investigation. It is unclear if all occupants of the hospital were found and evacuated from the fire.

Videos on social media showed people jumping from the building while others sat on external air conditioning units. Further details regarding the number of injuries and their condition were not available. Beijing Changfeng Hospital is about 25 minutes by car from central Tiananmen Square in the capital’s western urban area.