The fire broke out at noon Friday in Shantou, a city in south China's Guangdong province, engulfing the top floors of the four-story hotel, the agency said.

It wasn't clear how many people were in the Huanan Hotel at the time of the blaze, which took three hours to put out.

An investigation into the cause was under way in Shantou, located 290km northeast of Hong Kong.

"This is the most fatal fire in the province since 1994," Xinhua said.

"The incident on June 10 was the most serious fire accident in our province in recent years, this lesson of blood serves as a reminder that we cannot be complacent over work safety issues," Guangdong governor Huang Huahua was quoted by the Nanfang Daily newspaper as saying.

"The fire was put out around 4:00 pm... Many rooms were gutted," said an officer on duty at the Chaonan district fire brigade, who refused to give further details.

Four of the 15 injured, who were taken to Shantou's Central Hospital, were in a serious condition, an earlier report said.

No one at the Huanan Hotel or the hospital was available to comment Saturday.

It is unclear how many people were in the hotel at the time of the fire.