Sacred temple bursts into flames after tourist wrongly used incense and candles

A visitor’s improper use of incense and candles caused a pavilion at a sacred temple complex to burn down.

The fire broke out at Wenchang Pavilion on Fenghuang Mountain in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province, China, on November 12th.

Dramatic footage shows the three-storey structure engulfed from top to bottom with thick smoke rising to the sky as pieces of the roof fall from the building.

Officials said there were no casualties, and the blaze didn’t spread to any surrounding forest areas.

Investigators said preliminary findings showed that the fire was caused by a visitor’s improper use of incense and candles.

Authorities assured that the pavilion, built in October 2009, contained no cultural relics.

They stated that all buildings in the temple complex were modern constructions with no ancient architectural remains.

Official notices said the pavilion was commissioned in 2008, built with a reinforced concrete frame, and completed in 2009.

The structure had been managed by the neighbouring Yongqing Temple after completion.

Historical records said the original Yongqing Temple dated back many centuries, though the current buildings were rebuilt in the 1990s.

Local authorities said further action would be taken in line with the investigation results and that safety measures would be strengthened to reduce fire risks.

In 2023, flames ripped through a centuries-old temple in China, almost burning the historic building to the ground.

Crews rushed to the Shandan Great Buddha Temple in Gansu province’s Shandan County as a giant Buddha statue was surrounded by flames.

After the fire was extinguished, the Buddha statue appeared to remain partially intact, but several temple structures were destroyed.

According to local media reports, the statue was built in 1998 as a replica of an original, which dated back to around 425 AD and was damaged during the Cultural Revolution.

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