Police release photo of arsonist blamed for Hangzhou bus blaze
Print Edition
THE fire that tore through a bus in Hangzhou on Saturday afternoon, leaving 32 people injured, was started deliberately, police said yesterday.
The suspected arsonist — a man thought to be in his 30s but whose exact identity is unknown — is one of 29 people still in hospital receiving treatment for burns, smoke inhalation and other injuries, they said.
After watching footage from the surveillance camera inside the Line 7 bus, police said the suspect boarded the vehicle at 4:09pm at the Lingyin Temple terminal station. He was wearing a light colored shirt, dark shorts and slippers, and was carrying a dark backpack. He sat near the back door and placed the bag under his seat.
About 5:03pm, the man stood up and took a large plastic container from the backpack. He then splashed its contents over the floor and seats, and ignited it with a lighter. Flames rapidly engulfed the vehicle.
Police said they later determined the accelerant was banana oil, which is used as a lacquer thinner. Several passengers described the liquid as having a pungent odor.
The fire broke out as the bus, carrying about 80 people, was at the intersection of Dongpo and Qingchun roads in the downtown area of Hangzhou, capital of east China’s Zhejiang Province.
Passengers scrambled to get off the burning vehicle through the front door, while others smashed windows and leapt to safety. The central doors failed to open.
Car owners at the scene helped tackle the blaze with fire extinguishers from their vehicles, before firefighters arrived and brought it under control.
A passenger surnamed Cheng, from Jiangxi Province, said the arsonist was sitting behind her mother. Cheng was slightly injured in the fire, but her mother is in a serious condition after suffering burns to more than 90 percent of her body.
The oldest of the people hurt is 64 and the youngest 17, CCTV reported, adding that at least 14 people required tracheotomies.
Among the 14 is a person from Shanghai, who is in a serious condition after suffering burns to 80 percent of the body, the Shanghai Morning Post reported.
It said the person was surnamed Xie, but did not say if it was a man or a woman.
Several medical experts from outside Hangzhou have arrived in the city to help deal with the large number of burns victims.
Many of the passengers were tourists. Lingyin Temple — where the arsonist boarded the bus — is a popular attraction in the city.
The Hangzhou Public Security Bureau said on Saturday that police hadn’t found any evidence to suggest the arson attack was an act of terrorism.
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