Gas explosion, arson ruled out in deadly Liaoning restaurant fire

Authorities on Wednesday ruled out a gas explosion and arson as possible causes of the restaurant fire that killed 22 people and injured three others in northeast China's Liaoning Province on Tuesday.

The fatal blaze started at 12:25 on Tuesday in the restaurant in Liaoyang City’s Baita District. The operator of the establishment has been detained by police, local authorities said at a press conference, where the attendees observed a minute of silence for the victims.

"Investigations have found that the fire broke out from the side of the entrance, and there were no gas pipelines installed inside the restaurant. The three gas cylinders in the restaurant were in good condition. Gas explosion and arson have been ruled out as causes of the restaurant fire, and the specific cause of the accident is under investigation. Investigators are conducting investigations around leftover cigarette butts and electrical faults as possible causes. According to preliminary analysis, the blaze was accelerated by furnishings in the restaurant that were made from flammable materials along with strong winds, and the fire obstructed the exits very quickly and trapped the victims inside. They died from suffocation after inhaling a large amount of toxic fumes in a short period of time," said Guo Yunfeng, deputy Party chief of Liaoyang City.

"We have established 25 special working teams to serve the 25 people killed or injured in the fire. Each of the teams consists of one county-level official and four other members, so as to properly carry out the follow-up work, listen to relevant demands, and pacify all the relatives of the victims," said Zhu Ya, deputy Party chief of Baita District.

Gas explosion, arson ruled out in deadly Liaoning restaurant fire

The death toll from Israeli attacks on Lebanon since March 2 has risen to 3,666, with 11,321 others wounded, as Israeli strikes and shelling across the country continued, according to data released by Lebanon's Public Health Emergency Operations Center on Tuesday.

The latest update comes as fresh violence continued on Tuesday, with at least 16 people killed and dozens injured in a wave of Israeli airstrikes and drone attacks across southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese sources.

The deadliest attack targeted a residential area in the southern city of Tyre, where eight people were killed and 32 others were wounded, according to Lebanon's National News Agency (NNA) and local search and rescue officials.

Elsewhere, six people were killed in separate drone strikes in the Nabatieh region, including four in a pre-dawn attack on the town of Kfar Remmen. In another incident, two Syrian nationals were killed in a preliminary toll from a series of Israeli airstrikes that targeted the area between the towns of Ansariyeh and Adloun.

Lebanon's Civil Defense Directorate said two of its personnel sustained minor injuries when a drone strike hit an area in the town of Sharqiya while they were responding to an earlier attack on a vehicle.

The continued violence comes despite a ceasefire agreement reached on June 3 following trilateral negotiations in Washington involving Lebanon, Israel, and the United States.

Lebanon death toll climbs to 3,666 as Israeli strikes continue