A total of 611 people were killed in 48,882 fire incidents in China in the first quarter, the Ministry of Public Security said in Beijing on Tuesday.

The fire also resulted in 179 injuries and 280 million yuan (US$40 million) in direct economic loss, the ministry's fire department said in a statement.

Statistics show that most of the fire disasters occurred in densely-populated places such as residential areas. Of the fatalities, 468 were killed in such venues.

During the period, about 1.49 million police force took part in the fight against the fire, who rescued some 109,000 people from the disasters, according to the statement.

(Xinhua News Agency April 23, 2008)