At the news, Zhou Yi was startled but remained calm. He immediately rolled out of bed and dressed.
Shan Wenxu, in the other bed, was also jolted awake. His heart sank when he learned there had been a fire, and he hurried to get up and dress as well.
"Wenxu, you don't need to come. Yanan and I will handle it."
Zhou Yi spoke hastily to Shan Wenxu, then called Sima Yanan as he headed out. Downstairs, he got into his official car and went straight to the Shaohua Economic Development Zone.
Sima Yanan had also received a report. She immediately ordered her secretary to arrange a car, and half an hour later, she arrived at Auto Parts City in the development zone's industrial park almost simultaneously with Zhou Yi.
The flames leaping into the sky were clearly visible from far away. As they drew closer, the blaze became even more glaring, and a pungent smell filled the air.
By the time Zhou Yi and Sima Yanan reached the scene, hundreds of People's Armed Police personnel and police officers had cordoned off the site and surrounding area. More than a hundred nearby households had also been evacuated.
They got out of their cars, put on the masks their secretaries handed them, and looked up at the Auto Parts City building burning fiercely nearby, their hearts heavy.
Under their coordination, the city had deployed eleven firefighting squadrons, dozens of fire engines, and nearly two hundred firefighters to battle the blaze, but it still had not been brought effectively under control.
Xu Pei, director of the Development Zone Administrative Committee, Deputy Director Yang Shu, the director of the development zone's public security sub-bureau, and others hurried over.
As Xu Pei briefed the municipal party secretary and the mayor, his face was pale