Fire at Chinese Poultry Plant Kills over 100
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STR/AFP/Getty Images(BEIJING) — At least 119 people were killed and more than 50 people were injured when a massive fire broke out in a poultry processing plant in China’s Jilin province.
An estimated 350 workers were on site when the fire began.
The plant’s narrow hallways, a locked front gate and what survivors explained as “complicated interior” made escaping difficult, according to local media reports.
The Jilin Baoyuanfeng Poultry Plant employs about 1,200 people.
The state-run news agency Xinhua reported the fire was sparked by three early morning explosions. It was reportedly linked to blasts from an ammonia leak, according to the provincial fire department.
CCTV quoted unidentified workers who said the fire may have started in a locker room.
The incident spotlights lax safety standards in Chinese factories and highlights concerns over the impending takeover of U.S. food giant Smithfield by Shuanghui International, though Shuanghui is not related to the poultry plant.
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