A fire tore through a house in Beijing Saturday killing 19 people and injuring eight, Chinese state media said.
The inferno broke out in Beijing's southern Daxing district, Xinhua news agency said, citing local authorities.
The report did not specify the cause but said an unspecified number of suspects were in police custody.
Xinhua said the fire was brought under control some three hours after it erupted and that the injured had been rushed to hospital.
Deadly fires are common in China, where fire safety regulations are widely flouted and enforcement is often lax.
Eleven people died in September when a fire broke out in two houses in the eastern city of Taizhou.
EU to re-think civil protection aid after Portugal fires
The European Union is re-thinking civil protection assistance, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said Monday, after a request from Portugal which this year suffered several deadly forest fires.
"We will consider, at Portugal's request, the reorganisation of civil protection in Europe," Juncker said at a press conference alongside Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. … read more
