Firefighter Killed In Beijing Hotel Blaze

[Lucky 13]

AP - BEIJING: A firefighter was killed in a blaze that engulfed a luxury hotel being built near the iconic state television headquarters in downtown Beijing, state media said Tuesday.

Six other people were injured in Monday night's fire, state-run news agency said in a brief dispatch, giving no other details.

Zhang Jianyong died early on Tuesday morning at a hospital in Beijing from toxic gases he inhaled while fighting the fire, it said, citing the city's fire control authorities.

A statement on the Mandarin Oriental's website said there was no-one in the building at the time of the fire, indicating the death toll was unlikely to climb sharply.

The hotel was just a few hundred metres (yards) from the showpiece 234-metre (770-foot) CCTV tower designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas.

CCTV reported that the fire was brought under control by fire crews nearly four hours after it erupted.

News agency quoted a city government spokesman as saying initial reports indicated firecrackers set off to celebrate the Lunar New Year, China's most important annual festival, had caused the fire.

Firefighters found remnants of firecrackers on the roof of the burning building, media said.

The agency had earlier quoted a witness saying the blaze appeared to have been sparked after fireworks landed on top of the hotel building.

The fire sent flames, billowing clouds of sparks and a huge column of smoke high into the night sky over the eastern portion of the Chinese capital, drawing thousands of picture-snapping spectators.

I'll post more information as I get it...

[fireball]

may he rest in peace.

[jester1965]

Rest in peace Zhang.