SHANGHAI: Eleven people died when a blaze engulfed two houses early Monday in an eastern China city prone to fatal fire disasters, the government said.
The fire broke out shortly after midnight in the city of Taizhou in Zhejiang province, and left two other people hospitalised in serious condition, a local government statement said.
Ten more people sustained minor injuries.
The fire was soon brought under control and its cause was being investigated.
Deadly fires are common in China, where fire safety regulations are widely flouted and enforcement is often lax.
Taizhou has seen a number of deadly fires in recent years.
In 2007, at least 17 people were killed and several others injured when a fire engulfed a building of shops and apartments in Taizhou.
Sixteen people perished in 2014 when a fire tore through a shoe factory in the city, and another 18 died in February of this year in a blaze at a foot massage parlour on the city's outskirts.
Four people in charge of the massage establishment were detained following that disaster.