The former owner of a Chinese restaurant in Preston has received a record fine for a catalogue of safety failings. on 16 May 2013, Preston City Council took part in a multi-agency visit to China House Restaurant in Aqueduct Street. When inspectors entered the kitchen they found the Chinese cooking range to be leaking gas. They were also concerned that the flames were higher than expected and burning yellow, which indicated that the gas equipment may have been powered by Liquid Propane Gas (LPG) cylinders.
The officers immediately asked to be let into the cellar to see the gas supply but were refused entry. The owner of the restaurant, Wen Qaing Cai, said that he did not have a key with him and that it was in London. After some discussion Cai agreed that the key could be brought to the premises. While waiting for the key to arrive, the officers noticed that an external cellar door had been opened. A car had been reversed up to the cellar doors and its boot was open in an attempt to remove the evidence from the cellar.