At least 12 people have died in a fire at a residential building in southern China, the first major incident of its kind in the mainland since last month’s Hong Kong blaze.
The fire broke out at around 9.20pm on Tuesday in Shantou in Guangdong province and was put out about 40 minutes later, according to state news agency Xinhua.
The building was a four-storey reinforced concrete structure and about 150 square metres (1,600 square ft) were affected by the fire, local authorities said.
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On Wednesday, the Guangdong provincial government announced that a task force made up of police, emergency management and disciplinary officials had been formed to investigate the cause of the fire.
The ground floor of the building has been turned into a store selling household appliances and electrical equipment, Chinese media platform Jiemian reported.
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The area the house is situated in, Chaonan district, is a strong manufacturing hub with a number of small shops selling these goods or textiles.