At least 119 people died in a poultry slaughterhouse and subsequent fire that broke out in the northeastern Chinese province of Jilin just after dawn on Monday.

The explosion from a suspected ammonia leak occured during a shift change at the poultry plant owned by Jilin Baoyuanfeng Poultry Company. There were at least three hundred employees at the slaughterhouse when the explosion occured. At least 100 were able to escape the building during the fire. 60 people have been taken to hospitals for treatment of their injuries.

According to reports from family members, the plant’s doors were always kept locked and the workers there were forbidden to leave during their shifts there. It was also reported that the slaughterhouse also never practiced fire drills.

Because the source of the explosion was initially undetermined, thousands of nearby residents were evacuated from the area as 500 firefighters and over 250 doctors and nurses converged on the area.

Firefighter poured water onto the roof and into vents in an attempt to extinguish the blaze until a piece of heavy equipment was brought in to break through a wall in order to allow firefighters to pour water into the interior of the building.