Cause of Jiangxi Kindergarten Fire Determined

Cause of Jiangxi Kindergarten Fire Determined

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The fire at a kindergarten in Jiangxi Province, east China, Tuesday morning, was caused by mosquito-repellent incense which was burning under beds in the childrens' dormitory, investigations have shown.

The fire killed 13 children, largely due to suffocation. Four children in the same dorm escaped the fire, with one running away by himself and three being saved by rescuers, sources said.

When the fire occurred, no teachers were on duty. Three teachers held responsible for the fire were detained this afternoon.

When the fire broke out at the Jiangxi Radio and TV Arts Kindergarten, 304 people, including teachers, caretakers on internship and a chef stayed in the building.

So far, all the boarders have been evacuated from the accident site. The kindergarten has been temporarily closed.

The investigation was still going on at press time. The Jiangxi Bureau of Radio and Television Industry, which owns the kindergarten, has formed 13 conciliation groups to comfort the victims' families and deal with compensation.

Police arrest 3 staff

Police detained three staff members at a kindergarten in Jiangxi Province after 13 toddlers died in a fire, amid allegations carers were staying away instead of watching the children.

The three were questioned about the blaze at the school in the Jiangxi provincial capital Nanchang after it emerged the children were unsupervised when the fire broke out in the early hours of Tuesday morning.

A spokesman for the Jiangxi provincial television station, which owns the kindergarten, confirmed the arrests.

He told AFP the three were the school's night supervisor, the teacher in charge of the class devastated by the fire and a carer who was supposed to be looking after the children during the night.

"Other teachers and the principal are also being questioned. Many parents are very distressed by the whole thing and several of them have been taken to hospital for observation," he added.

Police say the fire was ignited when cotton bedding fell off one of the children's cots onto a lighted mosquito coil.

The carer, identified as Yang Huichen, lit three mosquito coils and placed them between the cots in the dormitory several hours before the blaze erupted.

Thirteen children aged between three and four died in the fire in the first-floor dormitory, while one boy rushed to safety and three others in the room were pulled to safety.

The kindergarten is inside a large walled compound which houses the provincial television station as well as living quarters, restaurants and stores.

It has a reputation for excellence -- children learn piano and art from an early age -- and the dead children were from well-off families paying fees of around 10,000 yuan (1,200 dollars) per year.

The two-year-old school has more than 300 children enrolled, although there were only around 100 inside when the fire broke out.

Many Chinese kindergartens provide boarding services for children from families in which both parents work. The youngsters usually stay on the premises on week days and return to families at weekends.