Fourteen people have been killed and dozens more hospitalised after a fire broke out in a high-rise building in northern China.

Axar.az reports, citing South China Morning Post, that the fire broke out at around 5pm on Sunday in Taiyuan, the capital city of Shanxi province, according to the local Yingze district government. The fire was put out by around 7pm and rescue efforts ended at around 8.30pm, the authorities’ statement said.

That night, 38 people were sent to hospital, including five people who had died. By Monday morning, the death toll had increased to 14, state news agency Xinhua reported.

“All-out efforts are being made to treat the injured, follow-up work is under way and the cause of the fire remains under investigation,” the district government said.

According to real-estate platform Lianjia, the building was a mixed-use residential and commercial block.

A member of staff at a hotel in the building told Jimu News on Sunday that he thought the fire started on the fifth floor and that some people were injured on the eighth floor. He helped firefighters search for survivors while some parts of the building were still on fire, he added.