Chinese investigators suspect construction work sparked a fire that caused 16 deaths in a shopping centre in the southwestern city of Zigong.
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The fire broke out on Wednesday night and took almost 10 hours to be extinguished, state media reported.
The 14-storey commercial building was evacuated, with 75 people led to safety, according to the official news agency Xinhua.
The building houses a department store, offices, restaurants and a cinema.
Social media video posts showed clouds of thick black smoke coming out of windows at the building's lower levels.
Local media said firefighters used several drones to combat the flames.
Fire hazards remain a problem in China, which reported 947 fire fatalities up to late May, up 19 per cent from those reported by the same time in 2023, according to the National Fire and Rescue Administration.
The number of fires in public places such as hotels and restaurants had risen 40 per cent and the most common causes were leaking gas lines and a failure to follow safety procedures.
In January, a fire killed 39 people in a commercial building in the southeastern Chinese province of Jiangxi.
This was caused by unauthorised welding in the basement.
In February, another 15 people were killed in a residential building in the eastern city of Nanjing.
Australian Associated Press
