17 punished after fatal demolition

GUIYANG - Seventeen government officials and workers in Southwest China's Guizhou province were penalized on Saturday after a demolition accident on Friday left two people dead and another three injured, local authorities said.

Five of the 17 people were suspended from their post, three were detained by police for dereliction of duty and nine employees were given punishment of security detention, according to the investigation team.

Officials with the Housing and Urban-Rural Development Bureau of Renhuai city, the city's Yanjin neighborhood committee and officials in charge of dismantling illegal construction were among those punished.

Workers were organized by the bureau to demolish a building that was being illegally constructed in a Yanjin community, located in the county-level city of Renhuai, at around 5 pm Friday, when a cement board fell from the building, injuring five construction workers.

Two of the five builders later died in hospital, and three others were receiving treatment in hospital, including one who was seriously injured, said a spokesman with the investigation team.

People carried the bodies of dead construction workers to the city government office building Friday night, drawing a group of onlookers. Under the persuasion of relevant authorities and police, the crowd dispersed later.

Further investigation is under way.

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