Officials in the Chinese city of Luoyang, where a Christmas night fire killed 309 people, have apologized to relatives of the victims and pledged to pay compensation to all the families, local media reported Saturday.
Luoyang's vice mayor Zhu Guangping admitted government workers had been negligent in their duties and also had mishandled the aftermath of the disaster.
"Some government workers had some obvious loopholes and errors in their work, causing harm to victims and their families," The Yangcheng Evening News reported Zhu saying to a group of bereaved relatives Thursday.
"On behalf of these workers, I apologize to everyone."
The gesture is unusual in China where officials rarely openly admit wrongdoing.
The fire at the Dongdu Commercial Center killed 309 people, most of them young people celebrating Christmas at a disco on the fourth floor of the building.
Zhu did not elaborate on the negligence by the government, but the building had been operating despite the government knowing for three years that it had fire hazards, according to local reports.
The China Daily on Saturday reported sources close to the fire department saying the building was on the top of a blacklist of the most dangerous buildings in Henan province.
Most of the victims were trapped by thick black smoke on the fourth floor, which did not have enough exits, and the fifth floors, whose fire escape leading to the roof had been locked, local media said.
The fifth floor escape was finally broken open by firemen nearly two hours after the blaze began.
Many victims' families were also angry at the government restricting only one family member to view each body. Their dissatisfaction erupted into a protest by hundreds of people Thursday, which forced the city to then allow several family members to see each body.
The Henan provincial government has also handed a self-criticism letter to the central government, according to the China Daily.
Zhu said families of the dead, regardless of whether the deceased had worked, would receive compensation, but did not specify the amount.
Ordinary citizens and companies have donated some 2 million yuan (240,000 dollars) to a fund set up for victims' families, the China Daily said.
Authorities have arrested 12 people suspected to be responsible for the fire, including several welders who allegedly started the blaze but did not alert anyone to it.
Lax fire safety standards in China lead to thousands of deaths every year -- BEIJING (AFP)
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