At the state-run Beijing Changfeng Hospital in the capital city’s Fengtai District, 21 people have been confirmed dead.
WITHIN NIGERIA gathered from Beijing Daily on Tuesday that Emergency response teams first received information just before 1 pm (0500 GMT) that a fire had broken out at the hospital.
The fire was extinguished about half an hour later, and rescue efforts continued for another two hours.
While 21 people have been confirmed dead, a total of 71 patients have been evacuated and transported to an unknown hospital.
The Beijing Daily said, “The cause of the accident is under further investigation.”
However, no information was available on the number of injuries sustained in the fire or their condition, and there was no word on whether or not all of the hospital’s occupants had been found and evacuated.
Beijing Changfeng Hospital is located in the capital’s western urban area, approximately 25 minutes by car from Tiananmen Square.
People were said to have posted videos on social media of themselves sitting on external air conditioning units, while others clinging to ropes jumped from the building.