11 die trying to keep warm
2008-12-02 19:10
Beijing - Eleven schoolgirls died of carbon monoxide poisoning in north China as they tried to warm themselves around a charcoal heater amid plummeting temperatures, state media reported on Tuesday.
Another girl remained in hospital in a stable condition after the tragedy on Monday night in a secondary school dormitory in Shaanxi province, the official Xinhua news agency said.
The girls, all of them fourth-graders around 10 years old, were discovered early on Tuesday morning and rushed to hospital, but 11 died, it said.
The report added that the province's vice governor had arrived at the school in Dingbian county to investigate.
China is just moving into winter and temperatures in the north of the country have already started falling below freezing.
- SAPA