1994 Karamay fire

1994 Karamay fire

Commemoration to mourn for the deaths in 12.8 Karamay fire 1994
Date	December 8, 1994 (1994-12-08)
Time	18:20 (Beijing Time)
Location	Karamay, People's Republic of China
Casualties
325 dead[1]
130 injured

The 1994 Karamay fire (simplified Chinese: 克拉玛依大火; traditional Chinese: 克拉瑪依大火; pinyin: Kèlāmǎyī Dàhuǒ) is considered one of the worst civilian fires in the history of the People's Republic of China that occurred on December 8, 1994. A fire broke out in a theatre hosting 1,000 children and teachers in Karamay, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.^[2] During the fire, the students and teachers were ordered to remain seated to allow Communist Party officials to walk out first.^[3][4] The fire resulted in 325 deaths with 288 of them being school children.^[3]

Incident

Fire

On December 8, 1994, 500 schoolchildren were taken to a special variety performance at a theatre in Karamay at Friendship Theatre (友谊馆). Most were the best and brightest pupils in their classes, aged between 7 and 14.^[3] From the accounts of survivors, it appears that spot lights near the stage either short-circuited or fell. The curtain caught fire, then exploded, and fire engulfed the auditorium within a minute or two.^[3]

Controversy

The first few seconds was the most crucial, and controversial of the disaster. Survivors insist that a female official immediately stood up and shouted: "Everyone sit down. Don’t move. Let the leaders walk out first (Chinese:同學们坐下,不要動,讓領導先走 .)" (Note: In Chinese, the order: 讓領導先走 has since became a popular internet catch phrase, meaning the government officials have priority over ordinary folks in times of emergency). She has since been identified in online articles as Kuang Li (况丽), who was vice-director of the state petroleum company’s local education centre, though there has been no official confirmation of this.^[3] The teachers obeyed, and the children remain seated. By the time the about 20 Communist Party officials had filed out through the only opened emergency exit, when all the other exits remained locked, it was too late. Teachers hurried the pupils out of their seats to other exits, only to find that the emergency exit doors were locked, and no one seem to care enough to get them opened. Parents and survivors alleged that Kuang took refuge in a ladies’ cloakroom that could have sheltered 30 people and barred the doors behind her. A 10 year old boy said "My teacher asked me to run out of the theatre, but when I stood up the hall was smothered in smoke and fire. The power then cut out. People could see nothing. The place was full of crying and shouting."^[3]

Aftermath

A total of 325 deaths were reported, with 288 of them being school children.^[3] Most of the 36 adults were teachers. About 100 corpses were heaped up outside the cloakroom. In 1995, 300 families of the dead and injured sent representatives to the National People’s Congress in Beijing, supposedly the venue for Chinese citizens to seek justice and a fair hearing. They were led off by security guards to a walled government compound, where five buses took them back to the airport. The group were then escorted through special channels to a plane bound for Xinjiang.^[3]

A court convicted a total of 14 people. Four of them senior officials who neglected their duty and imposed prison sentences of up to five years.^[3]

Families received compensation of up to 50,589 yuan.^[3]

Tragedy portrayed in folk song

A popular Chinese folk singer Zhou Yunpeng (周雲蓬) has compiled a list of Chinese man-made disasters and turned it into a song, and the Karamay fire incident was mentioned in the song, so was the internet catch phrase: 讓領導先走 (translit. Let the leaders walk out first.)

不要做中國人的孩子

不要做克拉瑪依的孩子，火燒痛皮膚讓親娘心焦
不要做沙蘭鎮的孩子，水底下漆黑他睡不著
不要做成都人的孩子，吸毒的媽媽七天七夜不回家
不要做河南人的孩子，愛滋病在血液裡哈哈的笑
不要做山西人的孩子，爸爸變成了一筐煤，你別再想見到他
不要做中國人的孩子，餓極了他們會把你吃掉
還不如曠野中的老山羊，為保護小羊而目露兇光
不要做中國人的孩子，爸爸媽媽都是些怯懦的人
為證明他們的鐵石心腸，死到臨頭讓領導先走

English translation:

Don't want to be children of Chinese

Don't want to be the children of Karamay, the fire that burn their skin also scorch mother's heart
Don't want to be children of Salan town, under the water so dark, he can't sleep
Don't want to be children of Chendu, drug addicted mother seven days seven nights no come home
Don't want to be children of Henan, HIV virus in the blood laughing HaHaHa
Don't want to be children of Shanxi, father's body is covered by black coal dust
Don't want to be children of Chinese, you will be turned into food during famine
Even old goats in the wild, will send eyes of staggers when their young were being hurt
Don't want to be Chinese's children, Papa Mama are a bunch of cowards
With heart made of iron and stone, shouting let the leaders walk out first when their children were burnt alive.

Another English translation:

Don't Ever Be a Chinese Child

Don't be a child of Karamay
whose burns would scorch a mother's heart
Don't be a child of Salan Town
who finds no rest beneath dark waters
Don't be a child of Chengdu
who waits for mum's return
after her week-long binge

Chorus (children laughing)

Don't be a child of Henan
where AIDS cackles in the blood
Don't be a child of Shanxi
where mines turn dads
into baskets of coal

Chorus (laughter)

Don't be a child of Karamay
Don't be a child of Salan Town
Don't be a child of Chengdu
Don't be a child of Henan...

Don't ever be a Chinese child,
or the grown-ups will
eat you when they starve

At least in the wild, mountain goats
are fierce enough to protect their kids

Don't ever be a Chinese child,
because mommy and daddy are cowards

When the theatre caught fire,
they steeled their hearts
and let the cadres exit first.

References

Internet video

In Chinese:盲人歌手周雲蓬《不要做中國人的孩子》Translation:Chinese folk song:Don't want to be Chinese's children

Additional sources

• In Chinese: “学生们不要动，让领导先走”Google translation
• In Chinese:大火中喊「讓領導先走」的，竟然升市長!Google translation
• In Chinese:從“讓領導先撤”到“讓學生娃先走” Google translation
• In Chinese:让领导先走Google translation
• In Chinese:由美国教授堵枪眼想起中国“让领导先走”Google translation
• In Chinese:克拉瑪依“12‧8火災”14周年悲記--"讓領導先走!"Google translation

See also

• 2000 Luoyang Christmas fire