A 12-year-old boy accidentally caused a major office fire after allegedly playing with a lighter while waiting at his mother’s workplace in Ningbo, Zhejiang province, China.
According to local media reports, the child had been brought to the office by his mother, who wanted to spend time with him while working.
However, while she was occupied with her duties, the boy was reportedly left alone inside the office.
Feeling bored, the child allegedly began playing with a lighter before setting a piece of tissue paper on fire.
The burning tissue is believed to have ignited several nearby items around a desk, causing flames to spread rapidly throughout the office space.
Realising the situation had spiralled out of control, the boy contacted his mother for help before firefighters were alerted to the scene.
While waiting for emergency responders to arrive, several employees attempted to extinguish the blaze using dry powder fire extinguishers.
Despite their efforts, large sections of the office had already suffered severe damage before the fire was finally brought under control.
No injuries or fatalities were reported in the incident, although losses were estimated to have reached tens of thousands of yuan.
The incident has also reignited discussions online about child supervision and workplace safety after many questioned why the child had been left unattended with access to dangerous objects such as a lighter.
