BEIJING – A grim Lunar New Year tragedy in Lanzhou put a harsh spotlight on daily safety risks in a fast-changing China. Around the same holiday period, reports of deadly car incidents appeared in different regions. At the same time, the country’s push for advanced technology and major infrastructure continues to collide with preventable loss of life.
From voice-controlled vehicle errors to drivers trapped in burning cars, and from failing bridges to weak public works, recurring engineering and oversight problems keep raising red flags. As a result, concerns about safety standards continue to grow in the world’s second-largest economy.
A recent case drew attention to the Lynk & Co Z20, an electric vehicle owned by Geely. In late February 2026, a driver traveling on a highway at night tried to dim the interior reading lights using the car’s voice assistant.
Instead, the system took the request, “turn off all reading lights”, as an order to shut off all lights, including the headlights. Dashcam video showed what happened next. The headlights went out, the driver tried several times to turn them back on, and the system replied, “operation could not be completed.” Moments later, the vehicle hit a median barrier.
Lynk & Co issued an apology and pushed an over-the-air (OTA) update. The change limited the headlight shutoff while driving to manual controls only. Still, critics said the quick fix pointed to a bigger design issue; smart cockpit features moved faster than basic fail-safe rules in a crowded EV market.
Electronic Door Design Turns a Xiaomi SU7 Crash Deadly
In Chengdu, new details released in early 2026 described an October 2025 crash involving the Xiaomi SU7. A 31-year-old driver, identified as Deng, crashed at about 167 km/h (104 mph) and reportedly had been drinking.
After the impact, the car crossed a divider and caught fire. People nearby ran to help, but they couldn’t open the doors. The SU7 used electronic flush handles tied to the low-voltage system. When power failed after the crash and fire, the handles stopped working. With no mechanical external backup, the driver died in the burning vehicle.
Afterward, the case renewed attention on hidden door designs in EVs. China later introduced rules that ban these designs in certain situations because they can trap people during emergencies. The incident also showed how style-forward features can block a basic need, such as a quick exit during a fire.
“Dummy” Fasteners and the Long Shadow of Tofu-Dreg Construction
Safety fears don’t stop with cars. China’s infrastructure still struggles with the “tofu-dreg” reputation, a label for weak builds and rushed work that falls apart like soft bean curd. Recent cases included bridges and highways that looked finished, yet hid serious defects.
In Sichuan province, inspectors found glued-on “dummy” bolt heads meant to hide missing fasteners. The bolts created the look of compliance during checks, even though the structure lacked the real parts. Similar stories have appeared for years, with low costs and tight timelines beating long-term strength.
Other reports have pointed to expressway failures tied to poor materials, including crumbling “fake cement.” In addition, investigators have cited styrofoam used as filler and recycled rubber that missed safety limits in rail projects. In 2025 to 2026, public confidence took more hits after sinkholes swallowed metro construction areas in Shanghai and after partial bridge collapses in Sichuan.
A Pattern of System Failures Behind Rising Deaths
Taken together, these events show a clear pattern:
- EV software risks: Voice assistants can misread simple commands, and weak safeguards can turn that into a disaster.
- Battery and power dependence: Low-voltage failure can disable critical functions, including door releases during a fire.
- Construction shortcuts: “Tofu-dreg” tactics continue because of rushed schedules, corruption, and weak checks. The result is hidden defects and sudden collapses.
- Regulatory gaps: Fixes often arrive only after tragedy, such as OTA patches or bans issued after people die.
China’s push for tech leadership and massive building projects has brought real progress. Yet it can also reward speed over safety. Meanwhile, state media often softens coverage of failures, and online censorship limits open discussion. Outside China, observers have also pointed to similar quality concerns in some Belt and Road projects, where defects have been linked to fatalities.
Experts say meaningful change needs more than damage control. Stronger independent inspections, better protection for whistleblowers, and stricter safety-first standards would reduce risk as projects scale up.
Behind every headline sits a family facing sudden loss. The Lanzhou gathering tragedy, deadly EV entrapments, and failing bridges all show the same truth: modern systems can turn dangerous when safety slips.
As China keeps moving toward major tech and infrastructure goals, public trust depends on clear accountability and stronger standards. Without that, more innovation will come with more preventable funerals.
