Virtual death traps for teenagers

The 24 young people who perished on Sunday in a fire at a Beijing Internet cafe were victims of an appalling disregard for safety associated with a booming underground industry, witnesses and analysts said.

They said the Government's tightening hold over the Internet had driven many outlets underground and into residential areas.

Located on the second floor of an old building in Haidian district, the Lanjisu Internet cafe, like many such illegal centres, had barred windows. Witnesses claimed the door was also locked, trapping the victims.

Internet cafes, which have sprouted across the capital in recent years, have become social hot-spots, particularly for teenagers and university students keen to play computer games and use chat rooms.

With outlets charging about three yuan (HK$2.80) an hour, users often stay for hours well into the night.

The facilities at many Internet cafes are minimal, with no safety equipment such as fire extinguishers even though smoking is allowed. At one of the cafes in the Haidian district yesterday, more than half of its 50 users were seen smoking.

Many outlets are crammed with computers from wall to wall, leaving a small path to the door. The centres are often in dilapidated buildings, usually on the upper floors or in the basement with no windows, leaving only one route of escape.