Famous Beijing Hotel Catches Fire
The nearly-completed Beijing Madarin Oriental Hotel, part of the new CCTV complex constructed especially for the 2008 Olympics, caught fire during celebrations for the Chinese New Year. The cause was illegal fireworks. I happened to take some photos of that very hotel during the summer of 2008. It was a spectacular-looking building in the newer portion of town. Luckily, the hotel isn't completed, so there don't seem to be many deaths--if any. The picture I've attached is from the summer and the link below leads new the New York Times article.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/world/asia/10beijing.html?partner=perm...