Devastating blaze at Chinese nursing home kills 38 residents

A fire has swept through an old people’s home in China, leaving 38 residents dead. Many of the bodies were burned beyond recognition and wheelchairs were reduced to charred frames at the privately-owned home in Pingdingshan in Henan province. The fire broke out on Monday evening at one of the home’s apartments, according to the state news agency Xinhua, and photos posted online showed a thick column of black smoke coming from behind a petrol station nearby.

The bodies were so badly burned, we couldn’t tell who was who.

State news agency Xinhua quoted one victim’s relative saying of the identification process

The blaze was extinguished less than an hour after it broke out but 38 of the home’s 51 residents were killed. Two of the injured were in a critical condition in hospital. Chinese President Xi Jinping urged rescue personnel to urgently help the injured and victims’ families and determine the cause of the fire as well as who was responsible, state broadcaster CCTV said. In 2013, 11 nursing home patients burned to death in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang after one of them set the facility on fire in a row over money.

Only myself and one other roommate managed to get out.

survivor Zhao Yulan, 82, who shared her room with 11 other people

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