On 22 July 2011 at 03:43
Beijing Time
The time in China follows a single standard time offset of UTC+08:00 (eight hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time), even though the country spans almost five geographical time zones. The official national standard time is called ''Beijing T ...
(20:00
UTC on the 21st), a bus fire occurred in
Xinyang
Xinyang (; postal: Sinyang) is a prefecture-level city in southeastern Henan province, People's Republic of China, the southernmost administrative division in the province. Its total population was 6,234,401 according to the 2020 census. As of t ...
,
Henan
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 ...
, causing the deaths of 41 people and injuring 6 others.
Fire
The fire occurred on
China National Highway 105
China National Highway 105 (G105) runs from Beijing to Macau SAR, via Langfang, Chuangzhou, Dezhou, Donge, Jining, Shuangyou, Fuyang, Liuan, Jiujiang, Nanchang, Ji'an, Guangzhou and Zhuhai. It runs to approximately 2,717 km, and, on a map, ...
, which links
Beijing
}
Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...
to
Zhuhai
Zhuhai (, ; Yale: ''Jyūhói''), also known as Chuhai is a prefecture-level city located on the west bank of Pearl River estuary on the central coast of southern Guangdong province, People's Republic of China, on the southeastern edge of Pe ...
,
Guangdong
Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020 ...
. At 3:43 am, a fire started at the rear of the bus,
rapidly consuming the bus. Upon noticing the explosion, the driver immediately pulled over to the left and stopped in 145 meters.
Some of the survivors reported hearing an explosion at the back of the vehicle when the fire started.
Six people, including the driver, survived and were hospitalized.
As a result of the fire, the vehicle was severely damaged.
Investigation
The investigation concluded that the vehicle was illegally carrying 15 boxes of
Azobisisobutyronitrile
Azobisisobutyronitrile (abbreviated AIBN) is an organic compound with the formula CH3)2C(CN)sub>2N2. This white powder is soluble in alcohols and common organic solvents but is insoluble in water. It is often used as a foamer in plastics and rub ...
,
each weighing 20 kg
.It was found that at
Weihai
Weihai (), formerly called Weihaiwei (), is a prefecture-level city and major seaport in easternmost Shandong province. It borders Yantai to the west and the Yellow Sea to the east, and is the closest Chinese city to South Korea.
Weihai's popul ...
, the starting point of the route, Huichang Company worker Zhang Hui (deceased) loaded the 10 boxes on to the bus, first into the luggage area then later moved into locked toilet with another 5 loaded on later, beside the toilet,
and due to the improper packaging, the motion of the vehicle and the heat generated from the engine caused it to decompose and combust.
According to the 'Safe management of dangerous chemicals', Zhang Hui should've used a
refrigerator truck
A refrigerator truck or chiller lorry (also called a Reefer), is a van or truck designed to carry perishable freight at low temperatures. Most long-distance refrigerated transport by truck is done in articulated trucks pulling refrigerated semi ...
,
instead deliberately transporting it on a public transport vehicle despite the contract stipulating the use of a refrigerated transport.
Aftermath
As a result of the investigation, 10 people involved with Weihai Transport Company, the manufacturer of the chemical and the contracted transporter company were arrested.
See also
*
Chengdu bus fire
*
Xiamen bus fire
On 7 June 2013, a mass murder-suicide attack occurred on a bus in Xiamen, Fujian province, China. A bus operating for the Xiamen BRT caught fire and exploded on an elevated lane near the Jinshan stop; 47 people died and 34 were injured.
Fi ...
References
External links
京珠高速客车起火案 on Baidu Baike
{{DEFAULTSORT:Xinyang bus fire, 2011
Fires in China
2011 fires in Asia
2011 disasters in China
Bus incidents in China
2011 road incidents
History of Henan
July 2011 events in China