Beijing: Death Toll Rises to 29 in Hospital Fire, 12 Detained

Facts

• The death toll has climbed to 29 following a fire at a private Beijing hospital. Initial investigations point to the cause of the inferno being the ignition of flammable paint materials used during the renovation of the facility.¹
• The fire broke out at around 1pm local time on Tuesday at Beijing’s Changfeng hospital, with social media videos showing smoke clouds surrounding the building and people desperately climbing out of windows and using bedsheets to lower themselves down from higher floors.²
• Authorities say 26 of the 29 casualties were patients, and that other victims included a nurse and a medical assistant. Reportedly, 142 people were evacuated — 39 are being treated for injuries, three of whom are in a critical condition.³
• Twelve people have been detained by police as part of the investigation into one of the deadliest fires in recent memory. Among those detained are the director and deputy director of the hospital, as well as the head of the firm overseeing the renovation works.⁴
• Details about the blaze were not revealed for several hours, and authorities allegedly “kept a tight lid” on information immediately after the incident, prompting criticism of Chinese officials. The response echoed the conduct of authorities following the deadly 2017 fire that killed 19 people in Beijing’s Daxing district, when officials allegedly censored reports about the disaster.⁵
• Tuesday’s fire was Beijing’s deadliest since the 2017 blaze, and many family members were kept in the dark about the tragedy for up to eight hours. Social media posts about the incident were also censored, sparking further criticism of media control in China.⁶

Sources: ¹Al Jazeera, ²NPR Online News, ³Associated Press, ⁴BBC News, ⁵The Week, and ⁶CNN.

Narratives

• Anti-China narrative, as provided by Newsweek. China’s censorship continues to spark outrage as details about Beijing’s deadliest fire in years went unreported for nearly eight hours. The Chinese censorship machine blocked videos of the tragedy and withheld details from victims' family members. The people of China should not have to face these sorts of delays around major news stories but, unfortunately, the Chinese government seems more concerned with controlling the narrative than it is with addressing national emergencies.
• Pro-China narrative, as provided by XINHUA.China is committed to the safety and wellbeing of its citizens above all, which is why China’s National Health Commission sent an expert team to guide the treatment of those injured in the Beijing hospital fire. Information on the story continues to emerge, but Chinese officials are ready to do whatever it takes to help those affected and to effectively determine the causes of this tragic incident.

Predictions