Fifteen people have been killed and more than 40 injured after a fire ripped through an apartment building in eastern China, local authorities said.
Footage shared on social medal showed flames and plumes of black smoke engulfing several floors of a skyscraper in Nanjing city.
Officials suggested the blaze started on the first floor of the building, where electric bikes were being stored.
But the specific cause of the fire remained under investigation.
The building is located in the Yuhuatai district of Nanjing, a city of more than eight million that lies about 162 miles (260km) north-west of Shanghai.
Emergency service crews were first alerted to the blaze at 04:40 local time (20:40 GMT) on Friday, officials said on Saturday morning.
Twenty-five fire engines and 130 firefighters were sent to tackle to the blaze. By 06:00 (22:00 GMT), the fire had been extinguished, with the search and rescue operation ending around 14:00.
Of the 44 injured people sent to hospital for treatment, one is in a critical condition and another seriously injured, the officials said.
At a press conference, Nanjing mayor Chen Zhichang offered his condolences and apologies to the victims’ families.
Aerial photos of the skyscraper shared on Friday after the fire had been extinguished showed some flats up the length of the building with blackened fronts.
