A government official was sacked yesterday after a fire in a nightclub killed at least 43 people and injured 88 others on Saturday in Shenzhen City, Guangdong Province.

Huang Guanghai, the vice head of Longgang District in Shenzhen City was removed from the position yesterday. Jiang Weibiao, director of Longgang District Fire Brigade, and Huang Yong, director of Longgang Neighborhood Committee, were also fired, People's Daily said on its Website today.

A police investigation found the nightclub had two shareholders including one still wanted for questioning. The legal representative of the unlicensed club, Wang Jing, turned herself in yesterday afternoon. Wang, 41, a native of Hunan Province, fled after the blaze, police said.

But another shareholder, Wang's ex-husband surnamed Zhang, is out of town on a business trip, Nanfang Daily reported today. According to the newspaper, Zhang is a government employee.

The fire broke out about 10:50pm on Saturday at King of the Dancers Club in Longgang District when more than 300 people were watching a performance. Five of the dead were from the neighboring city of Hong Kong.

The investigation showed the club opened on September 8, 2007. It did not possess a business license and had not passed fire control checks, according to the report.

Shanghai has asked all entertainment venues to check fire control systems today to ensure they are working properly.

(Shanghai Daily September 22, 2008)