China school fire: At least 13 students killed in dormitory blaze

An aerial drone shows the dormitory with charred windows after a fire at the Yingcai School. Credit: AP via Xinhua News Agency

A fire has killed at least 13 students after it broke out in dormitory of a school in China's central Henan province, state media reported on Saturday.

All of the dead were third grade students, a teacher told Zonglan news, a state-backed media outlet from Hebei province. One person rescued from the scene was being treated in the hospital, CCTV, China's state broadcaster said.

The fire started on Friday night and was put out just before midnight at Yingcai School in rural Fangcheng district in central Henan, and the school's owner was detained.

Local authorities said they were investigating the cause of the fire.

The boarding school caters primarily to students between the ages of four and 11, though it has an attached nursery, according to the school's WeChat page.

Many of the boarding students come from rural areas, the Beijing Youth Daily reported.

The facility is in Dushu township and is one of the school's two branches.

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