BEIJING, Aug. 15 --About 1,000 construction workers made a frantic evacuation after a blaze broke out Tuesday afternoon in a skyscraper that will become the Chinese mainland's tallest building.

The fire in the Shanghai World Financial Center in Pudong New Area was brought under control in a little more than an hour.

No one was injured, and there was no immediate damage estimate. But one construction official said the mishap shouldn't delay construction of the 101-story, 492-meter building, which is scheduled to open next year.

An electrician who escaped from the 40th floor said there were about 1,000 workers inside the building and only six elevators when the fire broke out.

"It was very chaotic at one point, as we all waited in the darkness for the elevator," the electrician told Shanghai's Oriental Morning Post. "Many decided to take the stairs."

About 200 firefighters entered the building to search it level by level to make sure everyone got out safely.

An initial investigation determined the fire was caused by sparks from a welder's torch. The sparks fell from the 53rd floor, igniting construction waste below, according to Yang Cheng, who works for the building's chief contractor.

"The fire broke out on the 26th floor, then smoke rose to the 80th floor in the elevator well," he said.

Yang said "dozens of" glass walls were destroyed, but the economic loss was not huge.

"It won't delay our working schedule," Yang said.

The city emergency response center received the alarm at 4:34 p.m., and firefighters had the blaze extinguished by 5:45 p.m. Emergency crews used standard pumper trucks and long stretches of hose to douse the flames. The building's advanced fire control facilities, including sprinklers, also were called into action.

(Source: Shanghai Daily)