Fire Engulfs 42-Story Building in China... Cause Identified as 'Cigarette Butt'

Fire Investigation Results Released 13 Months After Incident

The cause of the fire in a 42-story skyscraper in Changsha, Hunan Province, China last year was identified as a cigarette butt.

On the 14th, the Changsha Emergency Management Bureau announced the results of the investigation into the fire at the China Telecom building in Changsha that occurred in September last year. It took 13 months to determine the cause of the fire.

The China Telecom building in Changsha, Hunan Province, China during the fire (left) and after the fire
[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the investigation report, the fire started when a discarded cigarette butt ignited corrugated cardboard stacked outside the 7th floor of the building. At the time of the fire, various combustible materials such as corrugated cardboard and rotten wood were reportedly piled up outside the 7th floor. The fire then spread rapidly up to the 39th floor by spreading along the building’s exterior walls made of aluminum panels, which are vulnerable to fire.

Completed in 2000, the China Telecom building stands 218 meters tall with 42 floors above ground and 2 basement levels. It was the first building in Changsha to exceed 200 meters in height. China Telecom, a state-owned enterprise, is the largest fixed-line operator and the third largest mobile operator in China. Although there were no casualties from the fire, authorities reported direct property damage amounting to 7,913,600 yuan (approximately 1.46 billion Korean won).

Many citizens who witnessed the fire recorded videos that were widely shared on Chinese social networking services (SNS). These videos clearly showed the entire building engulfed in red flames and black smoke, with several large burning fragments, presumed to be parts of the building’s exterior walls, falling to the ground. One citizen who saw this expressed sorrow, saying, "It’s all burned, everything is burned."

Meanwhile, cigarette butts are also considered a major cause of fires in South Korea. According to the '2022 Fire Statistics Yearbook' published by the National Fire Agency on the 7th, among the main causes of all fires (412,573 cases) over the past 10 years, 'carelessness' accounted for the largest share at 50.0% (206,308 cases). Looking more closely at the causes of carelessness, 'cigarette butts' ranked first at 30.5% (62,985 cases), followed by 'cooking food' at 16.7% (34,445 cases), 'neglecting embers, flames, or fire sources' at 13.4% (27,644 cases), and 'burning garbage' at 13.1% (27,053 cases).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.