China strengthens fire safety for high-rise buildings

BEIJING, Dec. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Ministry of Public Security has issued a draft regulation on fire safety for high-rise buildings and for public consultation.

Shopping malls are banned from setting up on the third basement or below in high-rise buildings, and entertainment places should not be established on the second basement or below, the draft said.

"Activity rooms for children in high-rise buildings should be established on the first to the third floor with separated emergency staircases and exits," it said.

The draft stipulated that fire drills should be held at least once every half year in buildings with a height over 100 meters.

The public can submit their opinions online or via email and letter before Jan. 20, 2018.

A high-rise building refers to a public building with a height of more than 24 meters or a residential building with a height of more than 27 meters, according to the ministry.

According to the ministry, China has a total of 619,000 high-rise buildings of which 6,457 are super-high buildings above 100 meters.

In the last 10 years, 31,000 fire accidents have been reported, causing 474 people dead and direct economic losses of 1.56 billion yuan (237.1 million U.S. dollars). Enditem