A WOMAN in Shenzhen was severely burnt in a fire caused by the leakage of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) at the end of 2016, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported yesterday.

    Xie Chunxi is still being hospitalized for treatment at Shenzhen No. 2 People’s Hospital with multiple severe burns all over her body. She remains in serious condition.

    Xie’s son, identified as Liang, said that he had purchased a Midea brand water heater on Tmall.com in October last year to replace his mother’s old one.

    An installation technician from Midea came to their home to replace the water heater Nov. 18, but he did not seal off the LPG port of the old heater, which caused a fire when Xie turned on the gas cylinder to cook dinner that night.

    Police issued a notice about the fire Dec. 15, confirming that the fire originated in the bathroom. The fire was caused by an LPG leakage in the old water heater, which had not been dealt with properly when being removed.

    According to a group of photos provided by Liang, many items inside his home were burnt. His mother was sent to Longhua People’s Hospital and later transferred to the larger hospital in Futian District for her severe injuries.

    Liang blamed the Midea technician for bringing the tragedy upon them. The family had to forget their plan of going back to their hometown for the Spring Festival.

    Xie’s treatment at the hospital has cost more than 320,000 yuan (US$46,722) so far. The sum would exceed 400,000 yuan if it included the expenses at the previous hospital and of hiring a care worker.

    Midea, a home appliance maker, made an advance payment of 300,000 yuan to the family at the early stage of Xie’s treatment, although Liang hopes the company will pay for all of his mother’s treatment before they come to an agreement about compensation.

    A Midea staffer said Sunday that the installer had reminded the user to change the pipe of the old water heater before leaving the apartment. As adults, the users of the water heater should be partly responsible for the accident, according to the staffer.

    The company said it would continue to pay Xie’s medical expenses, but the sharing of responsibility will be discussed after Xie’s treatment is completed. (Zhang Qian)