TAIYUAN, China — A fire in a high-rise residential building in Taiyuan, the capital of northern China's Shanxi province, killed at least 14 people on Sunday, November 8, the official Xinhua news agency said on Monday, in one of the country's deadliest building fires this year. The toll rose overnight: five deaths had been confirmed by late Sunday night, and by Monday the figure had climbed to 14 as the full count from hospitals and the scene came in, Reuters reported, citing state media.

Source: Reuters via SRN News, Nov 9 2026

The fire broke out in the 40-storey building on a busy downtown main road in Taiyuan on Sunday evening — state media put the start at about 4:59 p.m. local time (0859 GMT). Smoke billowed over the tower as firefighters positioned on cranes outside battled to douse flames spreading from the building's centre, in video images circulated online and verified by Reuters.

Source: Reuters, Nov 9 2026

14People killed in the Taiyuan high-rise fire (Xinhua via Reuters)
38People taken to hospital after the fire
25Still in hospital on Monday, nine of them with serious injuries (state media)
40Storeys in the downtown Taiyuan residential tower
~2 hoursTime taken to put the fire out; rescue operations wrapped up by 8:30 p.m. Sunday

Rescue wrapped up by 8:30 p.m.

The fire was put out after about two hours, and authorities said rescue operations concluded by 8:30 p.m. on Sunday, with 38 people transported to hospital. On Monday, state media said 25 of them remained in hospital, nine with serious injuries, citing local authorities. No official breakdown of the dead by age or identity had been published in the reporting checked for this story, and Awaaz Punjab is not naming any victim.

Source: Reuters, Nov 9 2026; Devdiscourse (Reuters syndication), Nov 9 2026

What is not yet known

The cause of the fire is under investigation, state media said. Authorities have not yet said where in the building the fire started, how it spread from the centre of the tower, or whether any safety violations are suspected. Those findings will come from the official investigation.

What is solid

  • A fire broke out on Sunday evening (about 4:59 p.m. local time) in a 40-storey residential building in downtown Taiyuan, Shanxi; at least 14 people were killed, Xinhua said, reported by Reuters.
  • 38 people were taken to hospital; 25 remained in hospital on Monday, nine with serious injuries, state media said, citing authorities.
  • The fire was extinguished after about two hours and rescue operations concluded by 8:30 p.m. Sunday; the cause is under investigation.

What is only claimed

  • Early counts differed as the emergency unfolded — five deaths were confirmed by late Sunday night before the toll rose to 14 by Monday — reflecting updated hospital and scene counts rather than conflicting final figures; the figure of 14 is the latest given by state media via Reuters.

High-rise fire safety under scrutiny again

Taiyuan is a northern manufacturing hub, and its downtown is dense with residential towers above shops and offices. Deadly high-rise fires in China repeatedly raise the same questions — how quickly flames and smoke move through tall residential buildings, whether escape routes and alarms worked, and how fast external rescue can reach upper floors; in this case firefighters fought the blaze from cranes outside the tower. The official investigation is expected to address the ignition point and the building's fire-safety systems, and any findings on responsibility.

What happens next

Investigators are working to establish the cause, and hospitals in Taiyuan continue to treat 25 injured people, nine of them seriously hurt, so the toll could still change. Chinese authorities typically follow major fatal fires with safety inspections of similar buildings in the city and province. Awaaz Punjab will update this story if officials release the investigation's findings, the victims' details through official channels, or a revised toll.