Five people died after a furniture marketplace caught fire on Wednesday in south China's Guangdong Province, according to sources with the local firefighting authority.

The accident occurred at 3:00 a.m. when a fire broke out in a furniture marketplace in Jieyang city, and five employees were trapped.

Firefighters rescued the five, but they died on the way to the hospital because of smoke inhalation.

A total of 18 fire engines worked together to put out the fire two hours later in the four-storey building. The first three storeys were sales areas and the fourth was a dormitory for employees. Each story covered 600 square meters, and the fire area was 1,100 square meters.

(Xinhua News Agency September 11, 2008)