Recent developments in Quanzhou, Fujian, have shed light on a major traffic accident on the Shaxia Expressway. According to the local authorities, a heavy semi-trailer truck with Henan license plates rear-ended multiple small cars, causing a fiery collision that resulted in the death of 7 people and injuries to 2 others.
On May 7, the Quanzhou Municipal Emergency Management Bureau released a report assessing the implementation of accident rectification and prevention measures. The report revealed that on February 4, 2024, Wang Wei was driving the heavy semi-trailer truck loaded with stones, bearing license plate number Yu NW0526, along the Shaxia Expressway towards Wuhan from the provincial new service area when it rear-ended several small cars.
The accident triggered a series of vehicle fires, leading to the death of 7 individuals, injuries to 2, and direct economic losses amounting to 11.55 million Chinese yuan.
Following the incident, Wang Wei was transferred to the procuratorate for review and prosecution on August 14, 2024. On June 18, 2025, he was convicted of traffic negligence and sentenced to 6 years in prison for the accident.
Similarly, the actual owner of the vehicle, Zheng Tao, was also prosecuted for serious liability accident offenses on August 14, 2024. The court handed down a 6-year prison sentence on June 18, 2025, for his involvement in the incident.
The company responsible for loading the stones onto the semi-trailer truck, Henan Shangqiu Zhecheng County Mushi Transportation Co., Ltd., was fined 1.5 million yuan.
The legal representative and general manager of the company, Li Yi, was under investigation for significant liability accident offenses on April 7, 2025. The case is still under investigation.
Furthermore, individuals including Zhao Fei, legal representative of Zhecheng County Beidou Vehicle Information Technology Co., Ltd., and Liu Zhi, deputy director of Zhecheng County Transportation Development Center and director of freight and logistics at Zhecheng County Transportation Development Center, have also been implicated in this case.
Responding to these developments, Chinese netizens have engaged in heated discussions. Some suggested limiting the insurance coverage for large trucks, trailers, and mixer trucks to below 300,000 yuan to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Others have raised concerns about arbitrary law enforcement, questioning the motive behind handling accidents for profit.
Critics argue that Zheng Tao, as the owner of the vehicle, was not driving it at the time of the accident. They believe that the responsibility lies with the driver who should face criminal charges, while the owner could be held liable financially but should not bear criminal responsibility. This approach, they say, lacks specificity and amounts to arbitrary law enforcement.