Massive blaze claims 26 lives in Chinese coal company office; over 60 injured

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A devastating fire engulfed a five-story building belonging to a private coal mine company in Lishi District, Lyuliang City, located in north China's Shanxi province on Thursday. The incident, which started around 6:50 am local time on the second floor, resulted in the tragic loss of at least 26 lives, with over 60 individuals sustaining injuries, according to state media reports.

Prompt response and firefighting efforts managed to bring the flames under control, and ongoing rescue operations are underway. The injured have been swiftly transported to a local hospital for treatment. The building, owned by the coal mine company, serves as a stark reminder of the challenges posed by industrial safety in China. The nation frequently experiences industrial accidents attributed to insufficient safety standards and inadequate enforcement.

Meanwhile, Twenty-one people were injured in a fire in a coach of a passenger train early Thursday, just hours after a blaze in an express train in Uttar Pradesh's Etawah district.

The fire was reported around 2:40 am when the Delhi-Saharasa Vaishali Express was passing through an area under the Friends Colony police station, Etawah Superintendent of Police (SP) Sanjai Kumar said.

Fire tenders were rushed to the spot and the fire in the train's S-6 coach was doused, police said.

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The 21 injured passengers were taken to different hospitals for treatment, according to the Office of the Uttar Pradesh Relief Commissioner.

Of the injured passengers, 13 were admitted to a hospital in Saifai and seven are under treatment at the district hospital. One passenger was discharged after being administered first aid, the UP relief commissioner's office said.

Seventeen of the injured are natives of Bihar, three are from Uttar Pradesh's Gonda and one is from Rajasthan, it said.

Earlier, on Wednesday, around 5:30 pm, a fire broke out in the New Delhi-Darbhanga Special Express train, damaging three coaches and injuring eight passengers, according to officials.

The cause of the fires is yet to be ascertained, police said. (With inputs from AP and PTI)