An early morning fire at a Henan karaoke parlor has claimed the lives of 11 people. The fire started around midnight last night at the Emperor karaoke bar in Xinxiang. It was extinguished about an hour later. Thirty-five other people were sent to hospital with burns.

This isn’t the first time karaoke dens have gone up in flames. In July 2009, the owner of a Zhejiang karaoke parlor was jailed for 10 days after a fire trapped 18 people that had to be rescued.

Then in September 2011, Henan authorities shut down 253 entertainment establishments for violating fire regulations that included a Zhengzhou karaoke bar equipped with a fire hose that didn’t have any water.

Photos: Sohu, Yangcheng Evening Report, CCTV, Xinhua