Recently, claims have been circulating online that an explosion occurred at the Shenzhen facilities of the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD, allegedly resulting in thousands of worker casualties. It is even claimed that Xi Jinping dispatched Wang Huning, the chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and Cai Qi, a member of the Secretariat of the Chinese Communist Party and a member of the CCP’s Politburo Standing Committee and the director of the CCP General Office to lead a special task force to handle the situation.
At the same time, there are also rumors mentioning disruptions to local internet signals. Another claim suggests that BYD founder Wang Chuanfu may have been restricted in his personal freedom or has gone missing.These claims have not been officially confirmed.
Social Media reports of fire at Shenzhen base
At around 3 a.m. on April 14, multiple videos showing a fire at a Shenzhen BYD manufacturing plant quickly spread across the internet. The footage showed thick smoke billowing continuously, flames rising higher than nearby buildings, and occasional sounds of explosions.
The local fire and rescue bureau stated that the fire broke out at around 2 a.m., and firefighting and emergency teams were dispatched to the scene. The blaze was extinguished, and there were no casualties.
However, in less than an hour, the term “BYD fire” shot to the top of trending searches on Weibo, accompanied by a striking “explosive” tag, sparking heated discussion in the comments. Many people’s first reaction was: “Oh no, another battery self-ignition?” But some netizens questioned this, noting that the actual situation appeared to be a factory fire, with the ignition point suspected to be a multi-level parking facility where vehicles were stored, rather than a direct battery explosion.
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In response, BYD officially clarified that the fire occurred in a multi-story parking garage used specifically for storing test vehicles and scrapped cars, and that none of the vehicles were new production models intended for sale. However, many people questioned this explanation: how could a garage contain so many cars—reportedly more than a thousand—that were burned?
In addition, some netizens further challenged the official explanation:
“1. If it was just a garage for idle scrapped vehicles and did not affect production, why was construction work being carried out in the middle of the night? What was the name of the contractor?
2. If the fire was not caused by battery self-ignition but by construction workers igniting insulation materials, which company produced the insulation? Chinese regulations require such materials to be fire-resistant and flame-retardant.”
As the incident continued to develop, further claims circulated online that after the explosion at the BYD factory, Xi Jinping had dispatched Wang Huning and Cai Qi to urgently lead a special task force to Shenzhen.
The rumors allege that the explosion caused thousands of deaths, but that authorities are suppressing public opinion and blocking information. It is also claimed that internet signals have been restricted within a 10-kilometer radius of the factory.
In addition, a report released by “China Labor Watch” titled “Building BYD’s Szeged Factory: Labor Risks for Chinese Workers in Hungary’s EV Supply Chain” has drawn public attention to labor conditions involving Chinese companies’ overseas factory construction.
The report states that during the construction of BYD’s new electric vehicle factory in Szeged, Hungary, some Chinese workers hired through subcontractors and intermediary agencies faced multiple potential labor rights risks. These included excessive overtime, insufficient rest, lack of transparency in recruitment and management processes, and unreasonable wage and fee arrangements.
According to a report by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the findings include several suspected violations of Hungarian labor and immigration laws, such as working nine consecutive days per week with no rest days, while hiding actual working hours during government inspections; shifts lasting 12 to 14 hours with only short meal breaks and no overtime pay; wage arrears of up to three months, with part of the final payment only issued after workers return to their home country; high recruitment fees creating de facto debt bondage, making it difficult for low-income workers to leave even in poor conditions; and some workers entering on business visas rather than work visas, making them more vulnerable to exploitation and unable to access basic protections such as occupational injury and medical insurance.
The investigative organization also stated that it interviewed around 50 Chinese workers. The overall findings indicate that most workers involved in the construction process through subcontracting systems faced long working hours, opaque wages, and upfront fee burdens.
CBC noted that BYD’s labor conditions have been questioned in the past. For example, in May last year, Brazilian prosecutors sued BYD and two of its subcontractors, accusing them of maintaining working conditions resembling modern-day slavery at a factory project in the country.
In addition, China Labor Watch stated that it is conducting another independent investigation into BYD’s domestic factories in China.