Inferno horror: 22 Burnt alive as fire guts packed Chinese Restaurant

Tragedy struck in Liaoyang, northeast China, as a raging inferno ripped through a bustling restaurant on Tuesday, killing at least 22 people in a matter of minutes and leaving horror-struck onlookers scrambling for safety.

The UK Sun reports that shocking videos flooding social media capture the terrifying moment the fire devoured the building in a towering blaze, sending thick black smoke billowing into the sky as flames erupted from windows and doors. Parked cars nearby were scorched as the fire raged with unrelenting force.

The disaster unfolded around 12:25 p.m. local time, according to state media. Within moments, the fire had transformed the eatery into a deadly furnace, trapping unsuspecting diners and staff in a fiery hell.

Emergency services raced to the scene, but the inferno’s speed proved devastating. Alongside the 22 dead, three others were seriously injured, battling for their lives in hospital.

China’s President Xi Jinping has called for “every possible effort” to ensure the injured receive immediate and advanced medical treatment. He also ordered a full-scale investigation into the cause of the catastrophe.

Eyewitnesses described the scene as apocalyptic: “It was chaos… screaming, fire everywhere — the whole building was gone in minutes,” one local resident told reporters.

The scale and speed of the fire have raised serious questions about building safety and emergency exits in the restaurant — and whether lax regulations may have contributed to the deadly outcome.