At least 6 killed in S. China fire

10:30, December 22, 2019

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  Fire in Las Vegas apartment complex kills 6, injures 13

  Las Vegas firefighters work the scene of a fire at a three-story apartment complex early Saturday, Dec. 21, 2019 in Las Vegas. (Photo: AP)A fire in a three-story apartment complex in downtown Las Vegas killed 6 people and injured 13 others, including some who jumped or fell from upper-floor windows to escape heavy smoke early Saturday morning, authorities said.Firefighters arriving at the scene immediately called for backup and began treating injured and rescuing the numerous people hanging from windows, fire department spokesman Tim Szymanski said. “The first thing that you think of is: We’ve got to rescue those people. A fall of 16 feet (4.9 meters) or higher can be fatal.”Most injuries were from smoke inhalation but one victim had broken legs and a possible broken back, Szymanski said. “All of the victims have soot on them.”The cause of the fire appeared to be accidental and not criminal, with investigators quickly determining that the fire started in the area of a first-floor unit’s stove, Szymanski said. Displaced residents interviewed by investigators said some were using their apartment’s stoves for warmth because the building lacked heat, he added.The fire was largely contained to the one unit but it appeared that its occupant left the door open when evacuating, allowing smoke into the rest of the building, Szymanski said.Multiple agencies will conduct an investigation into whether there were building-code violations and seeking clues from autopsy results, samples taken from the building and interviews with survivors, he said.“If any citations are going to be issued — I’m not saying there is but if there are — it’s probably going to take some time because numerous city departments will be working together and they’ll want to be sure they’re covering anything before they issue anything,” he said.Initially, he said, investigators are focused on determining what happened, which takes time due to the need to interview dozens of survivors.Police homicide detectiv...

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  No Chinese killed by fire in Irkustsk, Russia

  A Russian firefighter works at the scene of a fire. (File Photo: Xinhua)China dismissed media reports on the death of Chinese nationals in a Russian fire on Wednesday.A blaze engulfed two wooden dormitories on Wednesday morning in Zalari township, Russia’s Irkustsk region, which reportedly killed two Chinese nationals and injured six others.“There were no Chinese nationals killed or injured in the fire," Chinese Consulate-General in Irkutsk said in a statement on Wednesday, saying it has confirmed the situation with Russian authorities.(Compiled by Chen Lidan)

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  Typhoon Phanfone kills at least 16 in Philippines

  Typhoon Phanfone swept across the central Philippines on Christmas Day, tearing roofs off houses. (Photo: AFP)A typhoon that swept across remote villages and popular tourist areas of the central Philippines on Christmas Day claimed at least 16 lives, authorities said Thursday.Typhoon Phanfone, with winds of 195 kilometres (120 miles) an hour, tore roofs off houses and toppled electric posts as it cut across the Philippines on Wednesday.With the internet and mobile phone networks still cut off in some badly damaged areas, a full assessment of Phanfones damage was not immediately possible on Thursday morning.But at least 16 people had been confirmed killed in villages and towns in the Visayas, the central third of the Philippines, according to disaster agency officials.Phanfone also hit Boracay, Coron and other holiday destinations that are famed for their white-sand beaches and popular with foreign tourists.The airport at Kalibo, which services Boracay, was badly damaged, according to a Korean tourist who was stranded there and provided images to AFP."Roads remain blocked, but some efforts have been made to clear away the damage. Its pretty bad," Jung Byung Joon said via Instagram messenger."Everything within 100 meters of the airport looks broken. There are a lot of frustrated people at the airport as flights have been cancelled."Taxis are still running but its windy and still raining so no one wants to leave the airport, including me. "Though much weaker, Phanfone tracked a similar path as Super Typhoon Haiyan -- the countrys deadliest storm on record which left more than 7,300 people dead or missing in 2013."Its like the younger sibling of Haiyan. Its less destructive, but it followed a similar path," Cindy Ferrer, an information officer at the Western Visayas regions disaster officer, told AFP.Tens of thousands of people in the mostly Catholic nation had been forced to evacuate their home...