In China's southern city of Chongqing, a crematorium has been unable to fire its furnaces because of a lack of diesel, leaving 10 corpses to go unburned.
The gory tale, which made headlines in the local press, vividly highlights the shortages of diesel sweeping across China as industries turn on their electricity generators for the first time in five years to bridge a gap in power supply.
The Chinese government is rationing electricity supply as it rushes to meet ambitious energy and environmental targets by the year’s end. Officials have mandated coal-fired plants to shut down to meet the goals, hence boosting demand for diesel, power generators and even candles as the country scrambles for extra power.