Songjiang factory fire claims two lives

Two people died when a fire broke out at a factory in Songjiang District around 10am on Thursday, the district's information office has said. 

Six other workers were injured in the blaze at 3778 Husong Expressway in Dongjing Town. 

Firefighters extinguished the flames by 12:26pm. An investigation into the cause is underway.

Fires claimed 17 lives in Shanghai in the first three months of the year, the city’s emergency management bureau said, the same figure as in the same period last year. 

Meanwhile, 65 people were killed in industrial accidents in the first three months, the bureau said, a 34 percent decrease. 

Gui Yucai, the bureau's deputy director, said that after the March 21 explosion at a chemical plant in Xiangshui in Jiangsu Province where 78 people died, the city had inspected 4,462 chemical companies. A total of 10 had been ordered to shut down.

The bureau also organized inspections at 815 gas stations in the city, uncovering 379 with potential safety hazards.

Gui added that last month's forest fire in western China that killed 31 firefighters and local helpers had sounded an alarm for Shanghai, as Chongming Island has a large forest area. 

The bureau is arranging a fire protection drill on the island.