Man ‘guarding village’ dies in tent inferno
Print Edition
A VILLAGER “guarding” land from developers was burned alive when his tent was reportedly doused with gasoline and set alight early yesterday.
Three people were also injured in the incident at Dujiatuan Village of Pingdu City in east China’s Shandong Province, the Pingdu government said yesterday.
Villagers had taken to staying in the tent to maintain a watch after clashes with a gang over development plans, according to Beijing Times.
Some 200 mu of land — 13.3 hectares — in the village was taken by developers, said the newspaper.
However, the village committee said they knew nothing about the program, it reported.
Without compensation, farmers tried to stop developers starting work, taking turns to watch over their land.
A group of young men turned up at the village in a convoy of vehicles 10 days ago, warning villagers not to obstruct building work, said the newspaper.
Threatened residents sounded a gong to alert fellow villagers, who drove the men away with farming implements, it said.
Yesterday, the fire broke out at 1:50am and was extinguished 40 minutes later, said the Pingdu government.
One person who previously suffered a stroke and could only move slowly died in the flames, said the statement.
The three others in the tent were taken to hospital for treatment, it added.
The Pingdu government did not say how the tent caught fire, but stated that the victims had not agreed with village officials on land income allocation.
According to Beijing Times, petrol was poured onto the tent and ignited.
Two injured villagers were receiving treatment in the intensive care unit at Weifang Hospital, while the third was in Pingdu Hospital, said the newspaper.
The dead man was named as Geng Fulin, said the report.
It said his brother was taken to hospital following the shock of seeing Geng’s remains.
Police are investigating and a government joint group is dealing with the aftermath.
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