Bored youngster picks up lighter and starts burning paper tissues in workplace; staff and firefighters battle to quell flames
2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenAlice Yanin ShanghaiPublished: 9:00am, 14 May 2026A 12-year-old boy in China who was taken to work by one of his parents literally played with fire and left an office completely destroyed.
The parent, whose gender is unknown, took the boy to an office in Ningbo in the eastern province of Zhejiang on April 30 in an effort to enhance their emotional bond, the Red Star News reported.
It is not clear what kind of company this parent works for.
While busy with work, the parent left the boy alone in the office. The youngster became bored and came up with an unconventional way to kill time: burning tissues using a lighter.
Flying sparks ignited clutter near the desk which developed into a massive blaze engulfing the office.
The boy called his parent for help and the parent called firefighters.
Meanwhile, the parent and some other employees tried to put out the flames using a dry-powder extinguisher.
Before the firefighters arrived, they had put out much of the fire, but the premises was gutted. No one was injured but losses from the blaze are thought to amount tens of thousands of yuan.
