China's railway authorities will rebuild the Nanjing Railway Station severely damaged in a fire on November 12.

Two new waiting halls, each with an area of 1,000 sq m, will be built on the eastern and western sides of the station square next month. A garden will be constructed on the site of the original waiting room destroyed by the fire.

An overall facelift of the station will start next year.

The fire, which broke out at about 1:00 a.m. on November 12 in a video entertainment room on the second floor of the station, completely destroyed the 2,200-sq-m passenger waiting room, cut electricity, and killed a businessman. Baggage offices were vacated to make way for temporary waiting rooms and a new 1,500-sq- m temporary waiting room was built on the station square soon after the fire.

Normal passenger and cargo transport operations have not been affected by the incident. Nanjing Railway Station, a major stop on the Beijing-Shanghai railway line, was built in 1968. (Xinhua)