December 21, 2015•Update: December 25, 2015
BEIJING
A Chinese court sentenced 14 construction officials to prison time Monday for an accident in which 10 workers were killed when a concrete structure collapsed at a Beijing high school last year.
State news agency Xinhua reported that the defendants were given jail time ranging from three to six years for "negligence" in connection with the collapse in December 2014, while another manager was handed a suspended three-year term.
Beijing's Haidian District said the construction chiefs instructed workers "not to lay steel bars needed to reinforce the concrete structure", resulting in the fatalities at a school affiliated with Beijing’s prestigious Tsinghua University.
The court also found the firm managers guilty of failing to ensure the implementation of safety protocols at the under construction gymnasium.
No students or staff were hurt in the incident on Dec. 29, 2014, but four other workers sustained injuries.
