At 15:48 on 24 July 2021, a fire accident occurred in Changchun City, Jilin Province, China, resulting in 15 deaths and 25 injuries. After the accident happened, Jilin Province comprehensively organised an emergency rescue, saving more than 100 trapped people. Given the dangers posed by these events, it is recommended that we must strengthen our risk awareness. Combined with the general background and scene of the fire, in this study, we analysed the causes of the accident and described the on-site rescue actions. The direct cause of the accident was an arc fault, and the indirect cause was the dereliction of duty in the laying and installation of the circuit and the subsequent fire supervision. From our case analysis of electrical fires in public buildings, we found that electrical failure, human factors (illegal operation), ageing and short circuits of wires, poor contact of wires, and ignition of other combustibles by electrical appliances are the main factors causing electrical fire accidents in public buildings. To avoid serious fire accidents caused by arc faults, we proposed suggestions to reduce or prevent electric fire accidents caused by arc faults.