Six people are still missing after an explosion at a chemical plant in eastern China that killed at least five people and injured 19.
The explosion occurred on Tuesday in an industrial area of Weifang city in Shandong province, blowing out windows in nearby buildings and sending out a thick column of white smoke, videos posted on social media showed.
The cause of the explosion at the plant, owned by Gaomi Youdao Chemical Co, a maker of pesticides and medical chemicals, has not yet been determined. The plant reportedly employs more than 500 people.
More than 230 local firefighters were dispatched to the scene, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
A student at a school just a mile from the plant told state news outlet The Paper that he heard an explosion and saw dirty yellow smoke with a reddish tint rising from the plant.
He noted that there was a strange smell and all students were given masks with instructions not to remove them.
A local environmental bureau official told The Paper that a team had been sent to the scene to assess possible contamination, but the results had not yet been released.
The explosion came less than two weeks after the National Emergency Management Ministry held a seminar on chemical industry risk prevention and control, where Beijing called on chemical park officials to improve their ability to “manage hazardous chemicals.”
The chemical plant was warned at least twice about safety risks last year, but in September the Weifang Emergency Management Bureau commended it for effectively managing workplace risks with the help of Party members.
In particular, according to the bureau, Gaomi Youdao party members identified more than 800 security threats in the first eight months of 2024 and eliminated all of them.
Workplace safety in China has improved over the years, but remains a persistent problem. The National Ministry of Emergency Management recorded 21,800 incidents and 19,600 deaths in 2024.
In 2015, a fire and explosion at a warehouse in Tianjin that contained a large amount of hazardous chemicals resulted in 173 deaths or disappearances.
In 2019, an explosion at a chemical plant in Yancheng, located in the eastern coastal province of Jiangsu, killed 78 people.
Sourse: breakingnews.ie
