(Adopted at the second meeting of the Standing Committee of the Ninth National People's Congress on April 29, 1998; revised at the fifth meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eleventh National People's Congress on October 28, 2008, promulgated by Order No. 6 of the President of the People's Republic of China on October 28, 2008, and implemented from May 1, 2009; second revision based on the Decision of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress on Amending Eight Laws including the 'Construction Law of the People's Republic of China' made at its tenth meeting on April 23, 2019; third revision based on the Decision of the Standing Committee of the Thirteenth National People's Congress on Amending Eight Laws including the 'Road Traffic Safety Law of the People's Republic of China' passed at its twenty-eighth meeting on April 29, 2021)

Contents

General Principles

Chapter 2 Fire Prevention

Chapter 3 Firefighting Organization

Chapter 4 Fire Fighting and Rescue

Chapter 5 Supervision and Inspection

Chapter 6 Legal Liability

Chapter 7 Supplementary Provisions

General Principles

Article 1 This Law is formulated in order to prevent fires, reduce the hazards of fires, strengthen emergency rescue work, protect personal and property safety, and maintain public security.

Article 2: Fire protection work shall implement the policy of prevention first and combining prevention with suppression. It shall be carried out in accordance with the principles of unified leadership by the government, legal supervision by departments, comprehensive responsibility by units, and active participation by citizens. A fire safety responsibility system shall be implemented, and a socialized fire protection network shall be established and improved.

Article 3: The State Council leads the national fire protection work. Local people's governments at all levels are responsible for the fire protection work within their respective administrative regions. People's governments at all levels shall incorporate fire protection work into the national economic and social development plans to ensure that fire protection work is commensurate with economic and social development.

Article 4: The emergency management department of the State Council shall supervise and manage fire protection work nationwide. The emergency management departments of local people's governments at the county level and above shall supervise and manage fire protection work within their administrative regions, which shall be implemented by the local people's government fire rescue agencies at the corresponding level. The fire protection work of military facilities shall be supervised and managed by their competent units, with assistance from fire rescue agencies; the fire protection work of underground parts of mines, nuclear power plants, and offshore oil and gas facilities shall be supervised and managed by their competent units. Other relevant departments of local people's governments at the county level and above shall, within their respective scope of responsibilities, carry out fire protection work in accordance with this Law and other relevant laws and regulations.

If laws and administrative regulations have other provisions on fire protection work for forests and grasslands, those provisions shall prevail.

Article 5: Any unit or individual shall have the obligation to maintain fire safety, protect fire-fighting facilities, prevent fires, and report fires. Any unit and adult shall have the obligation to participate in organized fire-fighting work.

Article 6: People's governments at all levels shall organize regular fire safety publicity and education to raise citizens' awareness of fire safety. Institutions, groups, enterprises, and public institutions should strengthen fire safety publicity and education for their own personnel. The emergency management departments and fire rescue agencies should strengthen the publicity of fire safety laws and regulations, and supervise, guide, and assist relevant units in carrying out fire safety publicity and education work. Education and human resources administrative departments and schools, as well as relevant vocational training institutions, should incorporate fire safety knowledge into their educational, teaching, and training content. News, radio, television, and other related units should carry out targeted fire safety publicity and education for society. Trade unions, Communist Youth League, Women's Federation, and other groups should organize fire safety publicity and education in combination with the characteristics of their respective work objects. Village committees and residents' committees should assist people's governments and public security organs, emergency management departments, etc., in strengthening fire safety publicity and education.

Article 7 The state encourages and supports fire science research and technological innovation, promotes the use of advanced fire protection and emergency rescue technologies and equipment; encourages and supports social forces to carry out public welfare activities in fire safety. Units and individuals who have made outstanding contributions to fire safety work shall be commended and rewarded according to relevant national regulations.

Chapter 2 Fire Prevention

Article 8: Local people's governments at all levels shall incorporate fire protection planning, which includes fire safety layout, fire stations, fire water supply, fire communication, fire truck passages, and fire equipment, into urban and rural planning and be responsible for organizing its implementation. If the urban and rural fire safety layout does not meet the requirements of fire safety, it shall be adjusted or improved; if public fire facilities and equipment are insufficient or do not meet actual needs, they should be added, reconstructed, equipped, or technically transformed.

Article 9: The fire protection design and construction of construction projects must comply with the national engineering construction fire protection technical standards. Units such as construction, design, construction, and engineering supervision shall be legally responsible for the fire protection design and construction quality of the construction project.

Article 10: For construction projects that require fire protection design according to national engineering construction fire safety technical standards, a system of fire protection design review and acceptance for construction projects shall be implemented.

Article 11 For special construction projects stipulated by the competent department of housing and urban-rural development of the State Council, the construction unit shall submit the fire protection design documents to the competent department of housing and urban-rural development for review, and the competent department of housing and urban-rural development shall be legally responsible for the review results.

For other construction projects not covered by the preceding paragraph, when applying for a construction permit or requesting approval of a commencement report, the construction unit shall provide fire protection design drawings and technical data that meet the construction needs.

Article 12: For special construction projects, if the fire protection design review is not conducted or fails to pass, the construction unit and the construction unit shall not commence construction; for other construction projects, if the construction unit fails to provide fire protection design drawings and technical data that meet the needs of construction, the relevant departments shall not issue a construction permit or approve the commencement report.

Article 13: When the construction project that should be subject to fire safety acceptance as stipulated by the competent department of housing and urban-rural development under the State Council is completed, the construction unit shall apply to the competent department of housing and urban-rural development for fire safety acceptance.

For other construction projects not covered by the preceding paragraph, after acceptance, the construction unit shall report to the competent department of housing and urban-rural development for record-filing, which shall conduct spot checks.

For construction projects that should undergo fire safety acceptance according to law, they are prohibited from being put into use if they have not passed the fire safety acceptance or if the acceptance is unqualified. For other construction projects that are found unqualified through random inspections according to law, they should be stopped from use.

Article 14 The specific methods for the fire protection design review, fire acceptance, filing, and spot checks of construction projects shall be stipulated by the competent department of housing and urban-rural development of the State Council.

Article 15: Fire safety inspections for the use and operation of public gathering places shall be managed through notification commitment. Before the use or operation of a public gathering place, the construction unit or the user shall apply to the fire rescue agency of the people's government at or above the county level where the place is located for a fire safety inspection, make a commitment that the place complies with fire safety technical standards and management regulations, submit the required materials, and be responsible for the truthfulness of their commitment and materials.

The fire rescue agency shall review the materials submitted by the applicant; if the application materials are complete and in compliance with legal forms, they should be granted permission. The fire rescue agency shall promptly verify the public gathering places that have made commitments in accordance with fire safety technical standards and management regulations.

If the applicant chooses not to use the notification commitment method, the fire rescue agency shall conduct an inspection of the premises within ten working days from the date of acceptance, in accordance with fire safety technical standards and management regulations. If the inspection meets the requirements for fire safety, a permit shall be granted.

Public gathering places that have not been approved by the fire rescue agency shall not be put into use or operated. The specific methods for fire safety inspections shall be formulated by the emergency management department of the State Council.

Article 16: Offices, groups, enterprises, institutions, and other units shall fulfill the following fire safety responsibilities:

(1) Implement the fire safety responsibility system, formulate the unit's fire safety system, fire safety operating procedures, and develop fire extinguishing and emergency evacuation plans;

(II) Configure fire-fighting facilities and equipment according to national standards and industry standards, set up fire safety signs, and regularly organize inspection and maintenance to ensure their integrity and effectiveness;

(III) Conduct a comprehensive inspection of the building fire-fighting facilities at least once a year to ensure their integrity and effectiveness. The inspection records should be complete and accurate, and kept on file for reference;

(IV) Ensure the unobstructed evacuation passages, safety exits, and fire truck access roads, and ensure that the fire compartmentation and fire separation distances comply with fire technical standards;

(5) Organize fire prevention inspections and eliminate fire hazards in a timely manner;

(6) Organize targeted fire drills;

(7) Other fire safety responsibilities stipulated by laws and regulations.

The principal person in charge of the unit is the fire safety responsible person of the unit.

Article 17: The fire rescue institutions of local people's governments at the county level and above shall identify units with a high possibility of fire occurrence and those that may cause significant personal injury or property damage as key fire safety units within their administrative regions, which shall be reported to the local people's government by the emergency management department for the record. In addition to fulfilling the responsibilities stipulated in Article 16 of this Law, key fire safety units shall also fulfill the following fire safety responsibilities:

(1) Determine the fire safety manager and organize the implementation of the unit's fire safety management work;

(II) Establish fire safety archives, identify key fire safety areas, set up fire prevention signs, and implement strict management;

(III) Implement daily fire prevention patrols and establish inspection records;

(IV) Conduct pre-job fire safety training for employees and regularly organize fire safety training and fire drills.

Article 18: If the same building is managed or used by two or more units, it shall be clear to each party their respective fire safety responsibilities, and a person in charge shall be determined to manage the shared evacuation passages, safety exits, building fire protection facilities, and fire truck passages in a unified manner. The property service enterprise of the residential area shall maintain and manage the shared fire protection facilities within the management area and provide fire safety prevention services.

Article 19: Places for the production, storage, and operation of flammable and explosive dangerous goods shall not be set up in the same building as residential places, and shall maintain a safe distance from residential places.

If the premises for producing, storing, and operating other items are located in the same building as residential premises, they shall comply with national engineering construction fire safety technical standards.

Article 20: When organizing large-scale mass activities, the organizer shall apply for a safety permit from the public security organs according to law, formulate fire extinguishing and emergency evacuation plans and organize drills, clarify the division of fire safety responsibilities, determine the fire safety management personnel, maintain complete, intact, and effective fire facilities and equipment, ensure that evacuation passages, safety exits, evacuation indication signs, emergency lighting, and fire truck passages meet fire safety technical standards and management regulations.

Article 21: Smoking and the use of open flames are prohibited in places with fire and explosion hazards. If it is necessary to carry out hot work due to construction or other special circumstances, approval procedures must be carried out according to regulations, corresponding fire safety measures must be taken; and the operators must comply with fire safety regulations.

Personnel engaged in welding, gas welding and other fire hazardous operations, as well as operators of automatic fire-fighting systems, must hold a certificate and comply with the fire safety operation regulations.

Article 22: The establishment of factories, warehouses for the production, storage, and loading and unloading of flammable and explosive dangerous goods, as well as dedicated stations and docks, shall comply with fire safety technical standards. Filling stations, supply stations, and pressure regulating stations for flammable and explosive gases and liquids shall be located in positions that meet fire safety requirements and also comply with fire prevention and explosion protection regulations.

Factories, warehouses, and dedicated stations and docks for the production, storage, and loading and unloading of flammable and explosive dangerous goods that have already been set up shall be organized and coordinated by local people's governments to solve within a specified period and eliminate safety hazards if they no longer meet the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Article 23: The production, storage, transportation, sale, use, and destruction of flammable and explosive dangerous goods must comply with fire safety technical standards and management regulations.

Entering places for the production and storage of flammable and explosive dangerous goods must comply with fire safety regulations. It is prohibited to illegally carry flammable and explosive dangerous goods into public places or take public transportation. The management of warehouses storing combustible materials must comply with fire safety technical standards and management regulations.

Article 24: Fire-fighting products must meet national standards; if there are no national standards, they must meet industry standards. It is prohibited to produce, sell, or use substandard fire-fighting products and those that have been explicitly phased out by the state. Fire-fighting products that are subject to mandatory product certification according to law must be certified as qualified by certification institutions with legal qualifications in accordance with the mandatory requirements of national and industry standards before they can be produced, sold, or used. The catalogue of fire-fighting products subject to mandatory product certification shall be formulated and published by the State Council's Product Quality Supervision Department in conjunction with the State Council's Emergency Management Department. For newly developed fire-fighting products that have not yet been subject to national or industry standards, they may only be produced, sold, or used after being technically appraised and found to meet the requirements for fire safety by methods stipulated by the State Council's Product Quality Supervision Department in conjunction with the State Council's Emergency Management Department.

Fire protection products that have passed mandatory product certification or technical appraisal in accordance with this provision shall be announced by the emergency management department of the State Council.

Article 25: Product quality supervision departments, industrial and commercial administrative departments, and fire rescue institutions shall strengthen the supervision and inspection of fire product quality according to their respective responsibilities.

Article 26 The fire resistance performance of building components, building materials, and interior decoration and decorative materials must comply with national standards; if there are no national standards, they must comply with industry standards.

The interior decoration and decoration of densely populated places shall use non-combustible or difficult-to-burn materials in accordance with the requirements of fire safety technical standards.

Article 27 The product standards of electrical products and gas appliances shall meet the requirements of fire safety.

The installation, use, and the design, laying, maintenance, and inspection of electrical products, gas appliances, as well as their lines and pipelines must comply with fire safety technical standards and management regulations.

Article 28: No unit or individual may damage, misappropriate, or unauthorizedly dismantle or deactivate fire-fighting facilities and equipment, bury, encircle, or obstruct fire hydrants, or occupy fire separation distances. No one may occupy, block, or seal evacuation passages, safety exits, or fire truck access roads. The doors and windows of densely populated places shall not be equipped with obstacles that affect escape and fire rescue.

Article 29: The unit responsible for the maintenance and management of public fire-fighting facilities shall keep the public fire-fighting facilities such as fire water supply, fire communication, and fire truck passages in good working order. When constructing roads or when power outages, water cuts, or interruption of communication lines are likely to affect the fire brigade's fire extinguishing and rescue operations, the relevant units must notify the local fire rescue agency in advance.

Article 30: Local people's governments at all levels shall strengthen the leadership of rural fire protection work, take measures to enhance the construction of public fire protection facilities, and organize the establishment and supervision of the implementation of a fire safety responsibility system.

Article 31: During the agricultural harvest season, forest and grassland fire prevention period, major holidays, and periods with frequent fires, local people's governments at all levels shall organize targeted fire safety publicity and education, take fire prevention measures, and conduct fire safety inspections.

Article 32: Township People's Governments and Urban Sub-district Offices shall guide, support, and assist Village Committees and Residents' Committees in carrying out mass fire prevention work. Village Committees and Residents' Committees shall appoint a person in charge of fire safety, organize the formulation of fire safety conventions, and conduct fire safety inspections.

Article 33 The state encourages and guides public gathering places and enterprises engaged in the production, storage, transportation, and sale of flammable and explosive dangerous goods to purchase fire public liability insurance; it also encourages insurance companies to underwrite fire public liability insurance.

Article 34 Fire protection technical service institutions such as fire facility maintenance, inspection, and fire safety assessment shall meet the conditions for engaging in their business, and practitioners shall obtain corresponding qualifications according to law. They shall accept commissions to provide fire protection technical services in accordance with laws, administrative regulations, national standards, industry standards, and professional codes of conduct, and shall be responsible for the quality of their services.

Chapter 3 Firefighting Organization

Article 35: People's governments at all levels shall strengthen the construction of firefighting organizations, establish various forms of firefighting organizations according to the needs of economic and social development, enhance the training of firefighting technical personnel, and improve the capabilities for fire prevention, suppression, and emergency rescue.

Article 36: People's governments at the county level and above shall establish national comprehensive fire rescue teams and full-time fire brigades in accordance with national regulations, and equip them with firefighting equipment according to national standards to undertake fire suppression work. Township people's governments shall establish full-time fire brigades and volunteer fire brigades according to the needs of local economic development and firefighting work, and undertake fire suppression work.

Article 37: National comprehensive fire rescue teams and full-time fire brigades shall undertake major disaster accidents and other emergency rescue work mainly aimed at rescuing people's lives in accordance with national regulations.

Article 38: National comprehensive fire rescue teams and full-time fire brigades shall fully play the backbone role of professional forces in firefighting and emergency rescue; according to national regulations, organize and implement professional skill training, equip and maintain equipment and apparatus, and improve the ability to extinguish fires and carry out emergency rescue.

Article 39: The following units shall establish full-time fire brigades to undertake the firefighting work of their own units:

(1) Large nuclear facility units, large power plants, civilian airports, major ports;

(II) Large enterprises that produce or store flammable and explosive dangerous goods;

(III) Large warehouses and bases that reserve important combustible materials;

(4) Other large enterprises with significant fire hazards other than those specified in items (2) and (3), and which are located far from the national comprehensive fire rescue teams;

(5) The management unit of ancient architectural complexes located far from the national comprehensive fire rescue team and listed as key cultural relics protection units in the country.

Article 40 The establishment of a full-time fire brigade shall comply with relevant national regulations and be inspected and accepted by the local fire rescue agency. Members of the full-time fire brigade shall enjoy social insurance and welfare benefits in accordance with the law.

Article 41: Institutions, groups, enterprises, institutions, as well as villagers' committees and residents' committees, shall establish various forms of fire-fighting organizations such as volunteer fire brigades according to needs, and carry out mass self-prevention and self-rescue work.

Article 42: Fire rescue agencies shall provide business guidance to full-time fire brigades, volunteer fire brigades, and other fire organizations; according to the needs of extinguishing fires, they may mobilize and command full-time fire brigades to participate in firefighting efforts.

Chapter 4 Fire Fighting and Rescue

Article 43: People's governments at the county level and above shall organize relevant departments to formulate emergency plans according to the characteristics of fires within their administrative regions, establish emergency response and disposal mechanisms, and provide personnel, equipment, etc., to ensure firefighting and emergency rescue work.

Article 44: Anyone who discovers a fire shall immediately report it. Any unit or individual shall provide convenience for reporting the fire without charge and shall not obstruct the reporting of the fire. It is strictly forbidden to falsely report a fire.

In the event of a fire in a densely populated place, the on-site staff should immediately organize and guide the evacuation of those present. Any unit that experiences a fire must immediately organize forces to extinguish it. Adjacent units should provide support. Upon receiving a fire alarm, the fire brigade must immediately rush to the scene of the fire, rescue those in danger, eliminate hazards, and extinguish the fire.

Article 45: Fire rescue agencies shall unify the organization and command of fire scene suppression, giving priority to ensuring the safety of people in danger.

The overall commander at the fire scene, according to the needs of extinguishing the fire, has the right to decide on the following matters:

(i) Utilizing various water sources;

(II) Cut off the supply of electricity, combustible gases, and flammable liquids, and restrict the use of fire and electricity;

(III) Establish a cordon and implement local traffic control;

(iv) Utilizing adjacent buildings and related facilities;

(5) To rescue personnel and important materials, prevent the spread of fire, demolish or damage buildings, structures, or facilities adjacent to the fire scene, etc.;

(6) Mobilize relevant units such as water supply, power supply, gas supply, communication, medical rescue, transportation, and environmental protection to assist in firefighting and rescue. In accordance with the urgent needs of extinguishing fires, local people's governments shall organize personnel and mobilize necessary materials to support firefighting.

Article 46: The national comprehensive fire rescue team and the full-time fire brigade shall be under the unified leadership of the people's government at or above the county level when participating in emergency rescue work for other major disasters and accidents besides fires.

Article 47: Fire engines and fireboats going to perform firefighting or emergency rescue missions shall, on the premise of ensuring safety, not be restricted by speed, route, direction, or command signals. Other vehicles, ships, and pedestrians should give way and not weave or overtake them; toll roads and bridges shall be exempt from vehicle tolls. Traffic management command personnel shall ensure the rapid passage of fire engines and fireboats. Firefighters rushing to the scene of a fire or emergency rescue site, as well as the mobilized firefighting equipment and supplies, which require railway, waterway, or air transportation, shall be given priority by the relevant units.

Article 48: Fire trucks, fireboats, as well as fire-fighting equipment, gear, and facilities shall not be used for matters unrelated to fire fighting and emergency rescue work.

Article 49: The national comprehensive fire rescue teams and full-time fire brigades shall not charge any fees for extinguishing fires or carrying out emergency rescue. The fuel, extinguishing agents, equipment, and apparatus consumed by the full-time fire brigades and volunteer fire brigades of an enterprise in extinguishing fires outside their own units shall be compensated by the people's government of the place where the fire occurred.

Article 50: Personnel who are injured, disabled, or killed while participating in firefighting or emergency rescue shall be given medical treatment and compensation according to relevant national regulations.

Article 51: Fire rescue agencies have the right to seal off fire scenes as needed, are responsible for investigating the causes of fires, and are responsible for compiling fire loss statistics.

After the fire is extinguished, the unit where the fire occurred and the relevant personnel shall protect the scene as required by the fire rescue agency, accept accident investigation, and provide truthful information related to the fire.

The fire rescue agency shall, based on the investigation and inspection of the fire scene and relevant test and appraisal opinions, promptly prepare a fire accident determination report as evidence for handling the fire accident.

Chapter 5 Supervision and Inspection

Article 52: Local people's governments at all levels shall implement the fire safety responsibility system and supervise and inspect the performance of fire safety duties by relevant departments of the local people's government at the same level.

The relevant departments of the people's governments at or above the county level shall carry out fire safety inspections according to the characteristics of their respective systems and promptly supervise and urge rectification of fire hazards.

Article 53: Fire rescue agencies shall supervise and inspect the compliance of organs, groups, enterprises, institutions, and other units with fire safety laws and regulations according to law. Public security police stations may be responsible for daily fire safety supervision and inspection and carry out fire publicity and education, with specific measures stipulated by the public security department of the State Council.

When fire rescue agencies and public security police stations carry out fire supervision and inspection, they shall present their credentials.

Article 54: If the fire rescue agency discovers potential fire hazards during fire supervision and inspection, it shall notify the relevant units or individuals to take immediate measures to eliminate the hazards. If the elimination of the hazards is not timely and may seriously threaten public safety, the fire rescue agency shall take temporary sealing measures in accordance with regulations against the dangerous parts or places.

Article 55: If the fire rescue agency discovers in fire supervision and inspection that the urban and rural fire safety layout or public fire facilities do not meet the requirements of fire safety, or if it finds major fire hazards affecting public safety in the local area, it shall be reported in writing by the emergency management department to the people's government at the corresponding level.

The people's government that receives the report shall promptly verify the situation, organize or instruct relevant departments and units to take measures for rectification.

Article 56: The competent departments of housing and urban-rural development, fire rescue institutions, and their staff shall carry out fire design review, fire acceptance, filing spot checks, and fire safety inspections in accordance with the statutory authority and procedures, ensuring fairness, strictness, civility, and efficiency.

The competent departments of housing and urban-rural development, fire rescue institutions, and their staff shall not charge fees for fire design review, fire acceptance, random inspection of filing, or fire safety inspections. They shall not seek benefits by abusing their positions; nor shall they designate or indirectly designate the brands, sales units, or fire technology service institutions, or fire facility construction units for users and construction units by abusing their positions.

Article 57: The competent departments of housing and urban-rural development, fire rescue institutions, and their staff shall consciously accept the supervision of society and citizens when performing their duties.

Any unit or individual has the right to report and accuse illegal acts by housing and urban-rural construction authorities, fire rescue institutions, and their staff in law enforcement. The organs receiving reports and accusations shall investigate and deal with them promptly according to their responsibilities.

Chapter 6 Legal Liability

Article 58: If any of the following acts are committed in violation of this law, the competent department of housing and urban-rural development and the fire rescue agency shall order the cessation of construction, use, or production and business according to their respective authorities, impose a fine of not less than thirty thousand yuan but not more than three hundred thousand yuan:

(1) Construction projects that should undergo fire protection design review according to law, which are constructed without legal review or fail the review;

(II) Construction projects that should undergo fire safety acceptance according to law, which are put into use without fire safety acceptance or fail the fire safety acceptance;

(III) Other construction projects specified in Article 13 of this Law, which are found to be unqualified through legal spot checks after acceptance, but continue to be used without stopping;

(IV) Public gathering places that are put into use or operate without the permission of the fire rescue agency, or whose use and operation have been found to be inconsistent with the promised content upon verification.

Upon verification, if it is found that the use and operation of public gathering places do not match the promised content, a deadline for rectification shall be set. If the rectification is not completed within the time limit or still does not meet the requirements after rectification, the corresponding permit shall be revoked according to law.

If the construction unit fails to file a record with the competent department of housing and urban-rural development in accordance with this law after acceptance, the competent department shall order it to make corrections and impose a fine of not more than 5,000 yuan.

Article 59: Those who violate the provisions of this law and engage in one of the following acts shall be ordered by the competent department of housing and urban-rural development to rectify or stop construction, and shall be fined not less than ten thousand yuan but not more than one hundred thousand yuan:

(1) If the construction unit requests the architectural design unit or the construction enterprise to lower the fire protection technical standards for design and construction;

(II) Architectural design units that do not carry out fire protection design in accordance with the mandatory requirements of fire protection technical standards;

(III) Construction enterprises that do not construct according to fire protection design documents and fire technical standards, reducing the quality of fire construction;

(IV) The engineering supervision unit colludes with the construction unit or building construction enterprise, engages in fraud, and lowers the quality of fire protection construction.

Article 60: If an entity violates this law and engages in one of the following acts, it shall be ordered to make corrections and fined between 5,000 yuan and 50,000 yuan:

(1) The configuration and setting of fire-fighting facilities, equipment, or fire safety signs do not meet national standards or industry standards, or they are not kept in good and effective condition;

(II) Damaging, misappropriating, or unauthorizedly dismantling or deactivating fire-fighting facilities or equipment;

(3) Occupying, blocking, or closing evacuation passages, safety exits, or engaging in other behaviors that hinder safe evacuation;

(IV) Burial, encirclement, or obstruction of fire hydrants, or occupation of fire separation distances;

(5) Occupying, blocking, or sealing fire access routes, thereby hindering the passage of fire engines;

(6) Setting obstacles on doors and windows of densely populated places that affect escape and fire rescue;

(7) Failure to take timely measures to eliminate fire hazards after being notified by the fire rescue agency.

A person who commits one of the acts listed in items two, three, four, or five of the preceding paragraph shall be given a warning or fined not more than five hundred yuan.

If any of the acts specified in Items 3, 4, 5, and 6 of this article are not corrected after being ordered to do so, enforcement shall be carried out, and the costs incurred shall be borne by the person who committed the illegal act.

Article 61: If a place for the production, storage, or operation of flammable and explosive dangerous goods is set up in the same building as a residential area, or if it fails to maintain a safe distance from the residential area, the production and operation shall be ordered to stop, and a fine of not less than 5,000 yuan but not more than 50,000 yuan shall be imposed.

If the production, storage, and business premises of other items are set up in the same building as residential premises and do not meet fire safety technical standards, they shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the preceding paragraph.

Article 62: Anyone who commits one of the following acts shall be punished in accordance with the provisions of the 'People's Republic of China Public Security Administration Punishment Law':

(1) Producing, storing, transporting, selling, using, or destroying flammable and explosive dangerous goods in violation of relevant fire safety technical standards and management regulations;

(II) Illegally carrying flammable, explosive, or other dangerous goods into public places or taking public transportation;

(3) Falsely reporting a fire;

(4) Obstructing the performance of duties by fire engines and fireboats;

(5) Obstructing the staff of fire rescue agencies from performing their duties according to law.

Article 63: Whoever violates the provisions of this law and commits one of the following acts shall be given a warning or a fine of not more than five hundred yuan; if the circumstances are serious, they shall be detained for not more than five days:

(1) Entering a place where flammable and explosive dangerous goods are produced or stored in violation of fire safety regulations;

(II) Violating regulations by using open flames for operations or smoking, using open flames in places with fire and explosion hazards.

Article 64: Those who violate the provisions of this law and commit one of the following acts, but do not constitute a crime, shall be detained for not less than ten days but not more than fifteen days, and may also be fined not more than five hundred yuan; if the circumstances are minor, a warning or a fine of not more than five hundred yuan shall be given:

(1) Directing or compelling others to violate fire safety regulations and engage in risky operations;

(II) Causing a fire due to negligence;

(3) Obstructing the alarm after a fire occurs, or personnel who have the duty to report do not promptly report;

(IV) Disturbing the order at the fire scene, or refusing to execute the commands of the on-site commander at the fire scene, affecting firefighting and rescue efforts;

(5) Intentionally destroying or forging the scene of a fire;

(6) Unauthorized unsealing or use of premises or parts sealed by the fire rescue agency.

Article 65: Those who violate this law by producing or selling substandard fire-fighting products or those that have been explicitly phased out by the state shall be subject to heavier penalties by the product quality supervision department or the industrial and commercial administrative department in accordance with the provisions of the 'Product Quality Law of the People's Republic of China'.

If a densely populated place uses substandard fire-fighting products or those explicitly phased out by the state, it shall be ordered to rectify within a time limit; if the rectification is not made within the time limit, a fine of not less than five thousand yuan but not more than fifty thousand yuan shall be imposed, and a fine of not less than five hundred yuan but not more than two thousand yuan shall be imposed on the person in charge directly responsible for the unit and other persons who are directly responsible; in serious cases, production and business operations may be ordered to stop.

In the event of a situation as stipulated in the second paragraph of this article, fire rescue agencies shall not only impose penalties on the users according to law, but also report the discovery of substandard fire products and those that have been explicitly phased out by the state to the product quality supervision department and the industrial and commercial administration department. The product quality supervision department and the industrial and commercial administration department shall promptly investigate and deal with producers and sellers according to law.

Article 66: If the installation, use of electrical products and gas appliances, as well as the design, laying, maintenance, and inspection of their lines and pipelines, do not comply with fire safety technical standards and management regulations, the responsible party shall be ordered to make corrections within a time limit; if the corrections are not made within the time limit, the use shall be stopped and a fine of not less than one thousand yuan but not more than five thousand yuan may be imposed.

Article 67: If an organ, group, enterprise, institution or other unit violates the provisions of Articles 16, 17, 18, and the second paragraph of Article 21 of this Law, it shall be ordered to make corrections within a time limit; if it fails to make corrections within the time limit, its persons in charge and other directly responsible personnel shall be given administrative sanctions according to law or be subject to a warning.

Article 68: If a fire occurs in a densely populated place and the on-site staff of that place fail to fulfill their duty to organize and guide the evacuation of the people present, and the circumstances are serious but do not constitute a crime, they shall be detained for more than five days but less than ten days.

Article 69: Fire service technical institutions such as fire facility maintenance, inspection, and assessment, which engage in fire technical services activities without the necessary qualifications or issue false documents, shall be ordered by the fire rescue agency to rectify the situation and fined between 50,000 and 100,000 yuan. The persons in charge and other directly responsible personnel shall be fined between 10,000 and 50,000 yuan. If they do not carry out fire technical services activities in accordance with national standards or industry standards, they shall be ordered to rectify the situation and fined between 50,000 and 100,000 yuan. The persons in charge and other directly responsible personnel shall be fined between 10,000 and 50,000 yuan. If there is illegal income, it shall also be confiscated. If losses are caused to others, they shall bear legal liability for compensation. In serious cases, they may be ordered to stop practicing or have their corresponding qualifications revoked by law. If significant losses are caused, the business license shall be revoked by relevant departments, and lifelong market entry bans may be imposed on the responsible personnel involved.

If the institutions specified in the preceding paragraph issue false documents, causing losses to others, they shall bear legal liability for compensation; if significant losses are caused, the fire rescue agency shall order them to stop practicing or revoke their corresponding qualifications according to law, the relevant departments shall revoke their business licenses, and lifelong market entry bans shall be imposed on the responsible personnel.

Article 70: The administrative penalties stipulated in this Law shall be decided by the competent departments of housing and urban-rural development and fire rescue institutions according to their respective authorities, except those that shall be decided by the public security organs in accordance with the relevant provisions of the 'People's Republic of China Public Security Administration Punishment Law'.

If construction, use, production, or business operations are ordered to be stopped, they must report to the department or institution that made the decision after rectification. Only after inspection and approval can construction, use, production, or business operations be resumed.

If the party fails to comply with the decision on suspension of production, business operation, use, or construction within the prescribed time limit, the department or institution that made the decision shall enforce it.

If the order to cease production or business has a significant impact on economic and social life, it shall be reported by the competent department of housing and urban-rural development or emergency management to the local people's government for legal decision.

Article 71: If the staff of the competent departments for housing and urban-rural development and fire rescue institutions abuse their power, neglect their duties, or engage in favoritism and fraud, and commit one of the following acts without constituting a crime, they shall be given administrative sanctions according to law:

(1) Approving fire safety design documents, construction projects, and places that do not meet fire safety requirements as qualified for review, fire acceptance, or fire safety inspection;

(II) Delaying fire protection design review, fire acceptance, and fire safety inspection without cause, or failing to perform duties within the statutory period;

(3) Failing to notify the relevant units or individuals in a timely manner of fire hazards discovered;

(IV) Using one's position to designate or indirectly designate the brand, sales unit, fire protection technical service institution, or fire facility construction unit for users or construction units;

(5) Using fire trucks, fireboats, as well as firefighting equipment, gear, and facilities for matters unrelated to firefighting and emergency rescue;

(6) Other acts of abusing power, neglecting duties, or engaging in favoritism and fraud.

If the staff of other relevant administrative departments such as product quality supervision and administration, industrial and commercial administration, etc., abuse their power, neglect their duties, or engage in favoritism and fraud in fire safety work, but do not constitute a crime, they shall be given administrative sanctions according to law.

Article 72: Those who violate the provisions of this law and constitute a crime shall be held criminally responsible according to law.

Chapter 7 Supplementary Provisions

Article 73 The meanings of the following terms in this Law:

(1) Fire-fighting facilities refer to fire automatic alarm systems, automatic fire extinguishing systems, hydrant systems, smoke control and exhaust systems, as well as emergency broadcasting and lighting, safety evacuation facilities, etc.

(II) Fire-fighting products refer to products specifically used for fire prevention, fire extinguishing and rescue, as well as fire protection, refuge, and escape.

(III) Public gathering places refer to hotels, restaurants, shopping malls, wholesale and retail markets, waiting rooms of passenger stations, waiting halls of passenger terminals, terminal buildings of civil airports, sports stadiums, auditoriums, and other public entertainment venues.

(IV) Places with dense crowds refer to public gathering places, outpatient and inpatient buildings of hospitals, teaching buildings, libraries, cafeterias, and collective dormitories of schools, nursing homes, welfare homes, nurseries, kindergartens, reading rooms of public libraries, exhibition halls of public exhibition halls and museums, production and processing workshops and employee collective dormitories of labor-intensive enterprises, and tourist and religious activity venues.

Article 74 This Law shall come into effect on May 1, 2009.