China's 'Big Underpants' Unhurt in Fire

The new CCTV headquarters is affectionately known as the 'big underpants' aka long johns. (China Photos/Getty Images)

The new 768-foot-tall CCTV Tower under construction in Beijing appeared to be unharmed by a blaze that engulfed an adjacent 500-foot-tall hotel and Television Cultural Center which was to open in a few months. There have been no reports so far of deaths or injuries.

The cause of the fire, which started around 8 p.m. Beijing time and was extinguished around midnight on Monday, is still unknown, but China's Official News Agency Xinhua reported that a witness said the fire started when firecrackers fell on top of the building. Many revelers were setting off firecrackers that night to commemorate the close of the Chinese New Year festivities.

The building next to the CCTV Tower caught fire in Beijing last night. (PETER PARKS/AFP/Getty Images)

Beijing lifted its strict restrictions on setting off fireworks for the day before Chinese New Year and the 15 days of the New Year festivities. The ban would have resumed on Feb. 10th.

From 1993 to 2006, there was an absolutely ban on fireworks, but due to public complaints, the municipal government agreed to lift the ban for the Lunar New Year. I'm betting they're regretting that decision today.

Initial news reports of the fire were a bit confusing, some even stating that it was the 51-floor tower that was on fire. The modern-looking tower is said to represent a single loop of interconnected activity, where two separate structures rise, then merge to create the cantilevered headquarters for the management of the China Central Television office. Many locals have nicknamed the structure 'big underpants' or 大 裤 衩 (da ku cha) for the way that it resembles long underwear.

Both the tower and the the building that caught fire, the Television Cultural Center, were designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas. The cultural center was to house the luxury Mandarin Oriental hotel as well as a theater, recording studios, and digital cinemas.

Some news reports have quoted onlookers who said the fire was inauspicious and did not bode well for the coming year. While the fire is tragic, I'm not sure that that interpretation is entirely representative of Chinese superstition. There is also the viewpoint that a fire to a business will only cause the new one that will be built in its place to be stronger than ever. Fire is said to represent growth and prosperity.