Fire Sweeps Through Karaoke Bar In China Killing At Least Eighteen People

A fire has swept through a karaoke bar in China killing at least eighteen people. The blaze occurred in Qingyuan city in Guangdong province, around an hour’s drive from the provincial capital of Guangzhou.

According to the official weibo account of police in Qingyuan, the blaze started just after midnight in a three-storey building.

Police said the fire may have been started intentionally and an investigation is now underway. The report gave no further details.

Footage later emerged from the scene of the tragedy, showing a powerful blaze engulfing the building as a crowd of onlookers watched on.

China has a patchy safety record for building regulations.

Beijing’s municipal government launched a 40-day “special operation” targeting fire code and building safety violations after an apartment fire in the Chinese capital last November killed 19 people, almost all of them migrants.