BEIJING, Nov 23 (Reuters) – China’s capital is targeting warehouses and factories illegally rented out as flats in a campaign to clear fire hazards after a fire in an apartment block murdered 19 people, state television reported on Thursday.
The crackdown has forced many migrant workers living in warehouses and basements to pack up and departsocial media reported, though a flurry of delivery and logistics companies are hit by emergency rules that shut several warehouse centers.
Police were alerted by a fire which broke out on Saturday at Beijing’s southern Daxing district, killing 19 people. An analysis found the fire started at a huge refrigeration storage space which was illegally built in the cellar, according to CCTV.
The apartment block is also close several storage warehouses and factory buildings which pose fire hazards, according to Chinese press reports.
The town government has ordered 40 times of security checks at a “blanket investigation and search campaign which will cover each and every village and family”, CCTV said.
Inspectors said it’s turned into a “cat-and-mouse chase” as several illegal landlords had repeatedly ignored warnings. However, this time the punishment could be “most intense” to address the issue once and for all, according to CCTV.
Dozens of people were seen walking out with luggage when Reuters visited one of those apartment blocks in Beijing’s Tongzhou district on Thursday, where forced evictions are reported along with a banner which read “crack down on illegally leased apartments” could be viewed.
The public said they needed to leave by Thursday night but did not provide a motive.
A landlord of another apartment block from the area told Reuters many other nearby apartments will be removed in the coming days. (Reporting from Yawen Chen, Irene Wang and Joseph Campbell; Testing by Nick Macfie)
source http://www.greenroometc.com/china-targets-illegal-apartments-after-beijing-apartment/
