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墨書 Inktalez
This was a major arson case with a death toll of 61. Some even claimed it was a case where a single matchstick "burned" the labor law.
You would never guess that the cause of this devastating fire was a 20-year-old girl who, after being fired for stealing from the factory, sought revenge.
What is infuriating is that even before her execution, the girl showed no remorse, insisting she was wronged and that a mere matchstick could not possibly kill 61 people.
Even more disheartening is that after the incident, each victim's family received compensation of 200,000 yuan, leading some to lament that they wished they had sent their daughters to work at the factory.
It must be said that human greed knows no bounds. How did this girl end up on such an irreversible path?
Date of the incident: December 13, 1993.
Location: Fuzhou City, Mawei District, Fujian Province.
*
At 3 AM that day, a loud clanging noise echoed from Gao Fu Textile Co., Ltd. in the Mawei Economic Development Zone.
Hundreds of workers still in their dreams were jolted awake, each face filled with anger. Most did not complain but rushed outside in their tank tops and sleep shorts because, in addition to the clanging sound of the metal basin, someone was shouting loudly, "Fire! Fire!" Some young female workers, however, were more timid and did not immediately flee their dormitory; instead, they took their time getting dressed and finding their shoes.
As these women leisurely exited their dormitory, chaos erupted when they realized the fire was in the warehouse next door and that the flames had blocked the dormitory's main entrance, preventing escape down the stairs.
It turned out that due to rapid company expansion, there was a severe shortage of employee accommodations. The management had privately converted half of the fourth-floor warehouse into temporary dormitories for over 200 female workers.
At this moment, those who had not yet escaped were terrified. They cried out for help while rushing toward the windows in a desperate attempt to break them and jump out.
Unfortunately, all windows had been fitted with sturdy security bars to prevent theft. These were not the typical bars found in homes; even with professional tools, it would take at least half an hour to pry them open.
Even more tragically, when the fire broke out, the security guards were in a panic. Not one of them knew the emergency number 119; it wasn't until ten minutes later—after being reminded by workers—that they called 110 to report the fire. Then 110 contacted the fire department.
However, the company was over 20 kilometers from downtown. Although firefighters responded immediately with numerous fire trucks upon receiving the alarm, they were too far away to extinguish the flames in time. By the time they arrived at the company's entrance, the fire had completely engulfed the fourth-floor warehouse.
Angrily, several large trucks were parked on the only road leading to the burning building in the factory area, blocking the fire trucks from passing through.
With no other option, the firefighters had to proceed on foot to rescue people, bravely charging into the inferno. Unfortunately, the warehouse on the fourth floor had been completely engulfed in flames, making it impossible to enter. The firefighters could only carry out 34 female workers who had been overcome by smoke on the second and third floors.
Soon, fire trucks from all over Fuzhou gathered at the scene. After more than two hours of hard work, the fire was finally extinguished.
Statistics revealed that this fire claimed 61 lives, most of whom were unmarried young women around 20 years old, with only one male security guard among the victims. But why was the fire so fierce? And why did it result in such a high number of casualties?
Investigations by the fire department uncovered that the fourth-floor warehouse had been illegally storing 150,000 kilograms of highly flammable materials, including acrylic yarn. According to regulations, these materials should have been stored separately in a fireproof warehouse.
However, the company had arbitrarily converted half of the fourth floor into employee dormitories, leaving only a wall between the dormitories and the warehouse. They also created seven large ventilation openings in the fire wall of the warehouse, rendering it completely ineffective.
After the fire broke out, a large amount of toxic gas flowed from these vents into the dormitory, and flames spread through them as well.
Strangely enough, while the company displayed a weak safety awareness, it maintained strict management of the warehouse. No one was allowed to bring any ignition sources inside, and every night they locked a heavy double steel door. The three keys were kept securely by two female workers and the workshop director.
So how did the fire ignite inside the warehouse? Where did the ignition source come from? With these questions in mind, firefighters examined the debris at the point of origin and unexpectedly discovered traces of decomposed alcohol, suggesting that this could likely be an act of arson. The case was then handed over to Fuzhou Police for further investigation.
Due to the significant impact of the fire, Fuzhou Police quickly established a special task force and enlisted renowned fire investigation expert Xie Fugeng to look into the case.
They first identified three female workers who held keys to the warehouse door as suspects. The door was specially made, making it nearly impossible to pry open silently; thus, it was likely that the arsonist had used a key to enter.
The first suspect was Xie Panpan, the workshop director, aged 28. Although she had a poor reputation and was known for her arrogant and domineering behavior, investigations revealed that she was not at the factory during the incident. Being a local resident, she usually stayed at home and had her key with her at all times without any signs of theft.
The second suspect was Ren Yulan, one of two female workers responsible for transporting materials. However, she was severely burned and currently in critical condition at a hospital, making it impossible to question her. The task force then turned to another worker involved in transportation, Lan Xiaomei.
Lan Xiaomei informed police that her key was kept in a shared locker in their dormitory inside a locked box.
Since the dormitory had been completely destroyed by fire, finding evidence to confirm her statement would be extremely difficult. Therefore, rather than dismissing her as a suspect, they believed she might have set the fire herself to escape quickly.
Faced with suspicion, Lan Xiaomei grew angry and claimed that others lost their lives simply because they cared too much about appearances. It turned out that when sleeping at night, the young women would remove their bras and only wear tank tops and underwear.
When the fire broke out, most people rushed outside without a second thought. However, many young women hesitated, feeling embarrassed to leave in their tank tops, scrambling to put on underwear and find pants. As a result, they lost precious minutes and watched helplessly as the only exit was consumed by flames.
In response to Lan Xiaomei's claims, the investigation team questioned other female workers who had escaped, and they all confirmed that Lan Xiaomei had no opportunity to commit the crime.
Subsequently, the police invested significant manpower and found a box where Lan Xiaomei kept her keys among the rubble. Inside, they discovered some melted metal from the keys, indicating that Lan Xiaomei could be largely ruled out as a suspect. This shifted the focus of suspicion onto Ren Yulan, who was still in critical condition.
According to reports from the factory's female workers, Ren Yulan was clumsy and often made mistakes. Just days before the incident, she had been harshly reprimanded by the workshop supervisor, who threatened to fire her. Could she have set the fire in retaliation for this?
At that moment, news came from the hospital that Ren Yulan had stabilized and was no longer in danger. Although she couldn't speak, her mind was clear. Learning that the police were investigating the keys, she endured intense pain to write down "Dong Yangling" on a piece of paper before slipping back into unconsciousness.
However, the investigation team was puzzled by the name "Dong Yangling," as she was not listed among the factory workers or among the 61 victims. Who could she be? With this question in mind, they approached workshop supervisor Xie Panpan and unexpectedly received an important lead.
Xie Panpan revealed that Dong Yangling had once been a factory worker known for her exceptional skills; her performance consistently ranked among the best each month. Many leaders at the factory viewed her favorably and intended to promote her to management.
Becoming a manager was every assembly line worker's greatest dream. However, for reasons unknown, during her candidacy for promotion, Dong Yangling resorted to underhanded tactics to sabotage her competitors and was also caught stealing raw materials from the factory for resale.
While the factory did not mind minor thefts of small materials, Dong Yangling brazenly stole expensive bundles of acrylic yarn and sold them. In a fit of anger, the factory director dismissed her. This incident had occurred over half a month ago.
After being fired, Dong Yangling had taken her wages and disappeared without a trace. Could she really have returned to seek revenge by starting a fire?
At that moment, police officers conducting interviews at the factory reported that two patrolling security guards had encountered a flustered Dong Yangling on the night of the fire. Unaware of her dismissal, they did not think much of it at the time.
This information excited the investigation team because it confirmed that Dong Yangling had been present at the scene during the incident. It was indeed suspicious for someone who had been fired over half a month ago to appear at the site at 3 AM.
Based on their findings, the investigation team believed Dong Yangling was a prime suspect and decided to apprehend her immediately. After searching, they quickly located and arrested her at another small factory.
During interrogation, this 20-year-old girl appeared extremely nervous; after just a few questions, she broke down in tears and confessed to everything.
It turned out that Dong Yangling was born in 1974 in a poor family in Changle County, Fuzhou. Her parents were small-time vendors with a penchant for cutting corners.
As Dong Yangling grew up, she inherited her parents' mindset and bad habits. Consequently, due to her tendency to take advantage of situations, she was dismissed from several jobs for being unscrupulous.
In 1992, her parents spared no effort in seeking various connections and resources to secure a job for her at Gao Fu Textile Co., Ltd. Dong Yangling felt extremely proud and valued this job greatly. With her abilities, she quickly gained the recognition of her superiors.
However, emboldened by her leadership's appreciation of her skills, her bad habits became even more rampant. Not only did she resort to underhanded tactics to sabotage her competitors, but she also escalated her theft from the factory, moving from scraps to stealing expensive acrylic yarn.
Sadly, her parents were well aware of her actions but felt no sense of wrongdoing; instead, they indulged and protected their daughter’s behavior.
In early December 1993, after exhausting her money on entertainment, Dong Yangling set her sights on the factory's acrylic yarn again and was caught red-handed by the workshop director. Upon learning of the incident, the factory manager wasted no time in firing her and withholding her salary for the month.
After being dismissed, Dong Yangling harbored resentment, believing that her life had become a mess because of the factory. Thus, an evil thought took root in her mind—she would take revenge on the factory.
In the early hours of December 13, Dong Yangling stealthily returned to the factory. She had prepared a small bottle of alcohol and some matches in advance and used a key stolen from Ren Yulan to unlock the warehouse door.
Once inside the warehouse, she poured alcohol over the acrylic yarn and struck a match. In an instant, flames erupted fiercely. As she watched the fire grow larger, a flicker of fear crossed her mind but was quickly replaced by a rush of satisfaction from her revenge.
She hurriedly fled the scene, unaware that this fire would lead to devastating consequences.
On October 25, 1994, the Fuzhou Intermediate People's Court sentenced Dong Yangling to death and deprived her of political rights for life. Dong Yangling appealed the verdict, but the Fujian Provincial High People's Court rejected her appeal and upheld the original sentence.
On December 20, 1994, Dong Yangling was executed.
This fire brought immense suffering and disaster to 61 families and served as a stark warning to society about the importance of safety production and moral education.
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