Fire kills 119 in China

A fire at a slaughterhouse owned by the Jilin Baoyuanfeng Poultry Company in northeastern China killed at least 119 workers on Monday.

Xinhua reports that at least several dozen other people were injured in the incident, which took place in Jilin province's Mishazi township.

The fire was reportedly sparked by three early morning explosions that were attributed to a leak of ammonia, a gas used in meat plant's cooling systems.

According to State broadcaster CCTV, several workers said the fire originated in a locker room during a change of shifts.

It is not yet known how many people were inside the factory at the time of the incident, though some unidentified workers said there were around 350 people in the building. About 100 workers reportedly managed to scape from the fire.

Media officials said they expect the death toll to rise as authorities continue to pull out bodies from the charred factory.