Harbin Hotel Fire: Injured survivors share stories of their escape

World
Europe

02:23

Officials say 22 people remain in hospital for treatment and one of them is in critical condition. The fire broke out in a hot spring hotel on Saturday morning and lasted for over three hours. The hotel owner has been detained by local law enforcement. CGTN's Wang Mengzhen has the latest on the injured.

The Harbin First Hospital received 20 of the 23 injured from the deadly fire early Saturday morning. That's where we met three seniors who had traveled together from Beijing to northeast China.

As the 72-year-old patient recalled, Harbin's Taiyang Dao or Sun island park, should have been the last destination of his 9-day tour.

PATIENT "I woke up at 2:30 am on Saturday and happened to see the thick smoke. We called the police instantly and covered our mouths with wet towels to avoid the smoke."

Smoke inhalation is said to be the main cause of the 23 injuries from the disaster. This is the second day for these patients to receive hyperbaric oxygen treatment in the chambers. And they said it's been quite effective.

PATIENT "I felt much better after the two days of treatment in the chamber, plus all the other care and treatment we received from inside the emergency intensive care unit."

Medical staff at the hospital worked quickly to treat the injured.

LIU YUEHONG, DEPUTY HEAD FIRST HOSPITAL OF HARBIN "We received the emergency call at around 6 am on Saturday and launched our emergency responses including special treatment, personal care and mental health interventions. Currently, we are treating 20 injured and all are in stable condition both physically and mentally. But we still need at least another 5 to 7 days to observe their situation."

A group of medical experts have launched injury identification and special treatment as well. WMZ CGTN, HARBIN, Heilongjiang province.