Chinese authorities blame saftey lapses for plant fire

Chinese authorities said lapses in basic safety were to blame for the poultry plant fire that killed 120 workers this week, The Wall Street Journal reported. The ongoing investigation has revealed that the 4-year-old plant was built with combustible materials, no fire extinguishers and a dearth of escape routes, most of which were locked during the disaster. On Thursday the government confirmed survivors’ reports of difficulty in escaping the smoke-filled facility, and that the plant’s workers never received evacuation instructions. Authorities have detained two executives of Jilin Baoyuanfeng Poultry. Yang Dongliang, director of the State Council’s State Administration of Work Safety, said the company bears “ultimate responsibility” but that the government is also to blame for lapses in supervision duties.