Shanghai, China, July 18 (EFE).- At least 16 people died after a fire broke out in a department store in the city of Zigong, in central China, state media reported Thursday.
The fire broke out around 6 pm on Wednesday and preliminary investigations indicate that it was caused by construction work, Xinhua news agency reported.
The rescue operations ended around 3 am on Thursday after verifying that no one was trapped in the building.
By 10:30 pm on Wednesday, firefighters had managed to evacuate about 75 people from the shopping center.
Videos circulated by local media showed groups of people crowded on the building’s terrace, fleeing the intense column of smoke billowing around them.
The 14-storey building is located in a high-tech zone of Zigong, considered the sixth most important city in Sichuan province and home to almost 1.3 million people.
A team of experts from the Ministry of Emergency Management and the National Fire and Rescue Administration has been sent to the area to investigate the incident. EFE
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