In Depth: How Corruption Burned Through China’s Firefighting Services
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At the end of September, China’s top graft investigators announced that the commander of the Sichuan provincial forest firefighter brigade had voluntarily turned himself in after coming under suspicion for corruption.
Xia Jinrong’s surrender came a few weeks after authorities announced on Sept. 5 that his former colleague, Luo Shuang, who held the same post in Southwest China’s Yunnan province, turned himself in in the face of similar suspicions. And both those announcements came in the wake of news on June 30 that their retired former boss, Qi Xingbin, the ex-commander of Sichuan’s provincial forest firefighter brigade, had handed himself over to authorities.
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- China’s fire services face a nationwide anti-corruption crackdown; at least seven provincial brigade chiefs and dozens of officials have been investigated since 2019.
- High-ranking officials accepted bribes for promotions, procurement contracts, and safety inspection approvals; Zhang Fusheng, a key figure, was sentenced to 13 years for accepting $5.5 million in bribes.
- Despite 2018 reforms, loopholes allow continued petty corruption, with fire safety standards creating opportunities for bribery in building inspections.
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- Before 2018：
- Most officials caught up in the current corruption crackdown held key positions before the 2018 reforms.
- 2016 to 2023：
- A detachment chief in Beihai, Guangxi, gave Huang Shaoming more than 1.3 million yuan on 15 occasions to secure promotions and favorable assignments.
- 2018：
- Sweeping reforms were initiated to professionalize and modernize China's fire services.
- October 2019：
- By this date, a crackdown on China’s fire services had been going on, according to the CCDI.
- March 2020：
- The Xinjia Hotel in Quanzhou, Fujian province, collapsed, killing 29 people; a government investigation concluded it was due to illegal construction enabled by corrupt officials.
- 2021 to 2022：
- Fire departments nationwide launched a procurement rectification campaign.
- December 2022：
- A Hubei procurement official returned 650,000 yuan after being questioned by investigators.
- April 2023：
- Huang Shaoming surrendered to authorities.
- October 2023：
- CCDI article states 38 officials at or above the level of deputy brigade commander had been investigated over the preceding years.
- January 2024：
- A state-produced TV documentary provided details about Zhang Fusheng's corruption, noting his first bribe in the 1990s.
- October 2024：
- Zhang Fusheng was sentenced to 13 years in prison for accepting nearly 39 million yuan in bribes.
- January 2025：
- The CCDI named firefighting as a key area in need of rectification.
- June 30, 2025：
- Qi Xingbin, ex-commander of Sichuan’s provincial forest firefighter brigade, handed himself over to authorities.
- August 2025：
- Li Shiyong was sentenced to 10 years and nine months in prison for accepting nearly 10.8 million yuan in bribes between 2012 and 2024.
- September 5, 2025：
- Authorities announced Luo Shuang, former commander in Yunnan province, turned himself in.
- End of September 2025：
- China’s graft investigators announced Xia Jinrong, commander of Sichuan’s provincial forest firefighter brigade, voluntarily turned himself in.
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