Jiaozhou Fire

As I made my way home this last Monday I stopped off at Zhongshan Park, just two stops down the Green Line from Jingan Temple, to pick up a few things. As I waited at the intersection, a procession of fire trucks and ambulances sped through lights flashing and alarms wailing. And, as they continued in their mad rush I wondered as to their destination, prayed briefly for their safety and for the safety of those they hurried to help, and continued to make my way home.

As I emerged from the metro stop at Jingan, the blare of sirens continued to pierce the air. I took my normal route turning on from Yanan onto Jiaozhou and walked briskly towards my apartment, as my feet carried me farther down Jiaozhou a large tower of smoke revealed itself behind the buildings that rose high on the street before me.

As I turned onto Xinzha, more firetrucks made their way towards what I later learned was a burning high-rise apartment building. Many were saved that day and many escaped with minor injury, but some are still missing and currently there are 53 confirmed dead.

In a couple weeks, most will have forgotten about this tragic fire, but those that survived it will still be dealing with the aftermath. Please keep them in your prayers.