13 dead after school dormitory fire in China

A fire which started in a dormitory at a school in central China has claimed the lives of thirteen individuals, according to the country’s news agency.

The inferno occurred on Friday night at a school for young children in Yanshanpu village, Henan province.

The school educates pupils in the nursery and primary grades.

The manager of the school, near Nanyang City, has been detained and an investigation is underway.

One other person is being treated in hospital and is in a stable condition.

No further details about the identities of the dead or the cause of the fire were released via official channels.

It was extinguished less than an hour after firefighters were alerted.

According to parents who spoke with newsmen, boarding school children are permitted to spend four days at home once every ten days. One indicated that tests were scheduled for the children before their holidays began the next week.

Harrowing footage of the fire showed people climbing out of windows onto air conditioning units to escape the flames.