Blasts rock China’s Chemical Plant

In a loud explosion at a pesticide plant in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu, at least 6 people have been killed and 30 have been seriously injured as per the official social media platform Sina Weibo. The fire department has said that the real cause of the blast is not known and the rescue effort is underway. Investigations are going on to determine the cause of the accident.

A huge fireball was seen exploding over the factory in a video which was shared on social media. The former was followed by massive plumes of smoke. The explosion had caused an earthquake of 2.2 magnitude in Lianyungang which is near the Yancheng blast.

In another footage which was aired by a TV broadcaster it was shown that the windows of the nearby houses blew out by the force of the explosion. There was enormous destruction seen in the industrial area where many fires were still blowing. Toxic fumes have also been reported from the blast site. An earthquake of 2.2 magnitude was recorded by the China’s earthquake administration in Lianyungang a place near Yancheng.

As per the local authorities the explosion had resulted after a fire in the fertiliser factory in the industrial park. The shockwaves from the explosion had knocked the nearby buildings down. The shockwaves had trapped the workers near the site. Various workers who had been covered in blood had to run out of the factory.

There is a growth in public anger in China against the incidents of industrial disasters like mining disasters, factory fires etc. These have raised concerns about the safety standards which have also had a deep impact on the economic growth of the country. In last November, an explosion had been caused at a PVC plant by a gas leak in the city which will be hosting the 2022 Winter Olympics. 24 people had been killed in that accident. It was later found that the Chinese Chemical firm had not disclosed the information and had also misled investigations. In another such incident a blast had occurred at a chemical plant in the Sichuan province. 19 people had died in the incident. It was later found that the company had done illegal construction and had not even passed the safety checks.