Beijing

Reminder issued on drug's side effects

China's drug watchdog issued a circular on Saturday to remind people of the possible adverse effects of allopurinol anti-gout pills. The circular from the China Food and Drug Administration said it recorded 485 cases of adverse reaction to allopurinol, including 140 severe cases, in 2012. More than 80 percent of the adverse reactions involved damage to users' skin, gastrointestinal tracts and bodies.

Jiangxi

Teacher sentenced for molestation

A primary school teacher in Jiangxi province was sentenced to 14 years in jail on Friday for molesting seven of his female pupils, local authorities said on Saturday. Tao Biaogong, a teacher at Shangyuan Primary School in Fanzhen township in the city of Ruichang, molested seven second-grade girls in class on many occasions from September 2012 to May 2013, the city's people's court ruled. Tao also infected six of the girls with sexually transmitted diseases, the court said.

Qinghai

4 drown after car veers into river

Four people drowned when their car rolled into a river in Qinghai province on Friday night, local authorities said on Saturday. The accident occurred when a car carrying six people veered off a rural road in Baoku township in Datong Hui and Tu autonomous county and rolled into the Baoku River. Local traffic police are investigating the accident's cause.

Ningxia

Man murders 7 in domestic dispute

Police explained on Saturday how a marital dispute led a man to murder his wife and six other members of her family in the Ningxia Hui autonomous region on Monday. The suspect, Ma Yongdong, was arrested on Friday evening in the city of Wuzhong. He was sent to Pengyang county, where the tragedy happened, around noon on Saturday, Pengyang's public security bureau said at a news briefing. Ma confessed to the murders. The victims included his pregnant wife Lan Xiuying and two young nieces, police said. The 24-year-old received only a junior middle school education. He and Lan wed about four years ago. They had marital conflicts because Ma was addicted to gambling and even lost his job at a local coal mine, Lan's relatives said. The case remains under investigation.

Fujian

19 urban management officers injured

Nineteen urban management officers were injured in a sulfuric acid attack in Fujian province during a dispute over a forced demolition on Wednesday, police said on Friday. Two villagers have been apprehended for their suspected roles in the attack, which took place on Wednesday in a village in the city of Xiamen, according to the public security bureau of Xiamen. Police said the urban management officers were removing an illegally erected warehouse when they had an argument with the building's owner, a 54-year-old surnamed Shao, and his son. The senior Shao then threw a bottle of battery fluid, which contained sulfuric acid, on the officers, causing burns, police said.

Guangxi

Ship catches fire; 2 missing, 9 rescued

Two people are missing after a ship caught on fire off the coast of the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region on Saturday morning, local maritime authorities said. The dredging vessel caught fire in waters about 5 km from the pier of a local power plant in the city of Beihai, the Beihai maritime rescue center said. Nine people who had been trapped on the vessel were rescued. Rescue work is ongoing for the two who remain missing. The 60-meter-long vessel was loaded with several tons of diesel. An investigation into the fire's cause is underway.

- Xinhua

(China Daily 10/20/2013 page2)