Three Dead as Second Gym in China's Heilongjiang Province Collapses Amid Blizzard Warnings

Collapse marks second fatal incident at a gym in Heilongjiang province within months despite safety inspections, as heavy snowfall exacerbates structural vulnerabilities. The victims include junior high school students with the gym's management head now detained.

• Three junior high school students were killed and one seriously injured when the roof of the Yuecheng Gym Stadium in Jiamusi city, in China's Heilongjiang province, collapsed amid heavy snowfall.
• The person responsible for the gym's management has been detained as authorities work to investigate the cause of the second-floor collapse.
• This incident follows a similar event in July in Qiqihar city, also in Heilongjiang, where the concrete roof of a school gymnasium collapsed after days of heavy rain, resulting in 11 deaths.
• Local officials had issued a red alert warning for snowstorms and urged local businesses to close, however, the gym remained open.
• This incident has sparked calls from locals for more rigorous inspections of large public facilities in the province and has prompted public concern over the effectiveness of safety inspections following the previous collapse.

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