Deadly Guangdong Fire, Dalian Dorm Blaze Raise Questions Over China’s Fire Safety

A fire at a textile factory in southern China has killed eight people and injured at least one other, while a separate dormitory blaze at an art college in Dalian has raised questions over emergency preparedness and the handling of information following the incidents.

The Guangdong fire broke out at 3:12 p.m. on Sept. 20 at a textile factory in Shunde District, Foshan, according to Chinese media reports citing local authorities. The two-story brick-and-concrete building had been divided into multiple factory units and was used for denim washing and related production.

The blaze burned roughly 200 square meters and heavily damaged the two-story factory. As of Sept. 22, authorities had not publicly released a detailed account of what caused the fire, or whether any safety violations may have contributed to the high death toll.

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Families await identification

Witnesses described heavy smoke pouring from the site as firefighters responded. Chen Ming, who works nearby, said he heard fire engines at around 3 p.m. on Sept. 20. When he returned to work the following morning, portions of the surrounding area had been blocked off and unburned denim products were being removed from the site.

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Another nearby worker, surnamed Fo, said the area had been “completely sealed off” by the evening of Sept. 21. A person identifying as a relative of one of the victims said family members were waiting for laboratory results before they could formally identify the deceased.

Another social-media user said a relative who worked at the factory remained unreachable as of the afternoon of Sept. 21 and that family members had already provided blood samples the previous night. Multiple witnesses identified the location as Changxing Industrial Park in Jun’an Town, Shunde. Videos from the scene showed the name “Xibulang” on an exterior wall.

Public records identify Foshan Shunde Xibulang Textile Industrial Co. as a manufacturer specializing in mid- to high-end denim fabrics. The company says it produces hundreds of varieties of mid- to high-end denim fabrics and has an annual output of more than 30 million yards. The factory is located in Jun’an Town, an area long associated with China’s denim and garment industry.

Dormitory fire in Dalian

Meanwhile, a separate fire broke out on Sept. 19 inside a dormitory at the Dalian campus of the Lu Xun Academy of Fine Arts. A student told Chinese media that the blaze began shortly after 9 a.m. in a third-floor room of Dormitory Building No. 3.

Some students were still asleep when they were awakened by shouting in the hallway as smoke filled the building. “It seemed like something exploded too, there was a really loud bang,” the student said, “Some students said it was a power bank that exploded.” They added, “Dormitory staff and students shouted loudly for people to evacuate. Fortunately, no one was injured.”

The room where the fire began was badly damaged, while hallway and stairwell walls were blackened by smoke. Some students reportedly paid for hotel rooms themselves that night.

Claims of delayed response and deleted posts

Separate allegations posted to an overseas X account painted a more troubling picture of the initial response. According to an anonymous student submission, staff did not immediately activate the fire alarm or clearly tell residents that a fire was underway, instead relying on people in the hallways to shout for students to evacuate.

The student also claimed that some dormitory workers and security guards did not know how to operate the building’s fire hydrants. The same account alleged that school officials quickly attributed the blaze to an exploding power bank, though the official cause remained unclear, and later instructed students not to post about the incident online. It also claimed administrators sought out students who had posted about the fire and asked them to delete the material.

The two incidents come amid a string of deadly fires reported across China this year, adding to broader concerns over workplace safety, emergency preparedness, and fire prevention in factories and residential facilities.