The Luoyang Christmas fire was a major fire that occurred in
Luoyang
Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the southeast, Nanyan ...
, in China's
Henan Province
Henan (; or ; ; alternatively Honan) is a landlocked province of China, in the central part of the country. Henan is often referred to as Zhongyuan or Zhongzhou (), which literally means "central plain" or "midland", although the name is al ...
, on 25 December 2000, killing 309 people.
Incident
A fire, triggered by sparks from welding activity at the Dongdu building, broke out in the basement at 9:35 p.m. local time, trapping construction workers on the second and third floors.
It was extinguished by 12:45 a.m Tuesday. Some 800 police officers and
firefighter
A firefighter is a first responder and rescuer extensively trained in firefighting, primarily to extinguish hazardous fires that threaten life, property, and the environment as well as to rescue people and in some cases or jurisdictions als ...
s and 26
fire engine
A fire engine (also known in some places as a fire truck or fire lorry) is a road vehicle (usually a truck) that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to a ...
s rushed to the scene after receiving the call.
A total of 309 people were killed in the fire: 174 females and 135 males. Among the dead were construction workers working on the second and third floors and nightclub patrons who were attending a gala celebration for Christmas Day at a dancing hall on the fourth floor.
Aftermath
An emergency meeting was held early Tuesday morning in the province and in the afternoon,
Shi Wanpeng, vice-minister of the
State Economic and Trade Commission
The National Development and Reform Commission of the People's Republic of China (NDRC), formerly State Planning Commission and State Development Planning Commission, is a macroeconomic management agency under the State Council, which has ...
, also arrived in Luoyang. To prevent similar accidents, the
Ministry of Public Security released an urgent circular, asking local governments to spare no efforts to ensure safety during the
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is a festival observed in most of the world on 1 January, the first day of the year in the modern Gregorian calendar. 1 January is also New Year's Day on the Julian calendar, but this is not the same day as the Gregorian one. Whi ...
and the
Spring Festival holidays.
See also
*
List of nightclub fires
This is a list of notable nightclub fires at indoor and outdoor venues. Many involve pyrotechnic failures.
See also
* List of fires
This article is a list of notable fires.
Town and city fires
Building or structure fires
Transportation ...
References
Extended reading
;Compilation of news articles on Sina.com
:*
;Documentary
:*河南洛阳东都商厦12·25火灾. Editor:何杰, Scriptwriter:任志军, Photography:孙小磊. Duration: 13 minutes 45 seconds. Uploaded t
QQ videoBilibili video
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luoyang Christmas Fire, 2000
History of Luoyang
2000 disasters in China
Building and structure fires in China
2000 fires in Asia
Nightclub fires
December 2000 events in China