Beijing, September 26: A massive fire erupted at an under-construction research facility belonging to tech giant Huawei in China's Dongguan city on Friday. The fire killed three people at the building under construction in the Songshan Lake industrial development zone. The deceased were identified as employees of the industrial park management company.

As many as 140 firefighters were called who eventually extinguish the blaze, according to a statement released by the local fire brigade. Visuals from the spot showed dark clouds of smoke billowing out of a blue and white building. Pictures showing the charred structure surrounded by fire engines also emerged on social media. Huawei was developing a research base at the site.

In a separate statement, Huawei said the building was a "steel structure, and has not yet been put to use". The Dongguan Songshanhu district, where the building was located, is one of the biggest headquarters of Huawei, with 313 acres. China Fire: Factory Blaze Kills 19 in Eastern Chinese Province of Zheijiang, 3 Injured.

Huawei, whose products are banned in the US, is battling hard to secure the release of Meng Wanzhou, its high-profile CFO and daughter of the company's founder Ren Zhengfei, who was detained in Vancouver in Canada in December 2018 on the US charges of bank fraud. The Huawei executive is also accused of misleading HSBC Holdings about her company's dealings with Iran, which the US has sanctioned. She is fighting possible extradition to the United States.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 26, 2020 08:10 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).