Official killed in Anhui hotel fire

Source: Xinhua  |   2009-1-7  |     NEWSPAPER EDITION

ONE person was confirmed dead and three others were injured when a hotel in east China's Anhui Province caught fire early yesterday, the local government said.

All the victims were officials of Changfeng County, a county government spokesman said.

Liu Zebin, a senior county official, suffocated when his bedroom in Changfeng Hotel caught fire just after midnight.

The county chief and a deputy chief were seriously injured after jumping out their windows on the fourth floor to escape the fire. Another official suffered minor burns, said the spokesman.

He said none of the officials was native to Changfeng County. "They were working here under an exchange program for a year or two and had not brought their families along."

The county government had arranged for them to stay at the hotel in Shuihu Town, he said. Other guests and employees of the hotel survived without injuries.