Lupa Kata Sandi? Klik di Sini

atau Masuk melalui

Belum Memiliki Akun Daftar di Sini


atau Daftar melalui

Sudah Memiliki Akun Masuk di Sini

Konfirmasi Email

Kami telah mengirimkan link aktivasi melalui email ke rudihamdani@gmail.com.

Klik link aktivasi dan dapatkan akses membaca 2 artikel gratis non Laput di koran dan Majalah Tempo

Jika Anda tidak menerima email,
Kirimkan Lagi Sekarang

China Chemical Plant Blast Kills 62

Translator

Tempo.co

Editor

Laila Afifa

23 March 2019 11:28 WIB

TEMPO.COYancheng - An explosion at a pesticide plant in eastern China has killed 62 people, state media said late on Friday, March 22, with 34 people critically injured and 28 missing, the latest casualties in a series of industrial accidents that has angered the public.

The blast occurred on Thursday at the Chenjiagang Industrial Park in the city of Yancheng, in Jiangsu province, and the fire was finally brought under control at 3 a.m. local time on Friday (19:00 GMT), state television said.

Survivors were taken to 16 hospitals with 640 people being treated for injuries, state media had said earlier.

The fire at a plant owned by the Tianjiayi Chemical Company spread to neighboring factories. Children at a nearby kindergarten were also hurt, media said.

The cause of the explosion is being investigated, but the company - which produces more than 30 organic chemical compounds, some highly flammable - has been cited and fined for work safety violations in the past, the China Daily said.

Police, some wearing face masks, sealed off roads to the plant. The blast smashed windows in the village of Wangshang two kilometers (1.2 miles) away, and stunned villagers likened it to an earthquake.

"There was one loud bang followed by a long rumble," one, who gave his family name as Wang, told Reuters. "All the windows were smashed. I went to have a look. Near the site there was blood everywhere. People were crushed."

The village stands beside a murky mildewed pond and was built in 2013 for people displaced by the construction of the industrial park where the blast took place. Dozens of Wangshang residents work at the park, and many have not come home.

Many buildings had broken windows and further structural damage, but villagers have not been evacuated. Unlike the police on site, none of them wore masks and had not been advised to.

President Xi Jinping, who is in Italy on a state visit, ordered all-out efforts to care for the injured and to "earnestly maintain social stability", state television said.

Authorities must step up action to prevent such incidents and determine the cause of the blast as quickly as possible, Xi added.

"There has recently been a series of major accidents, and all places and relevant departments must fully learn the lessons from these," the report cited Xi as saying.

The Jiangsu environmental protection bureau said late on Friday that a team of 126 inspectors found various degrees of contamination in local water samples, with nitrobenzene concentrations exceeding standards at one location. Some volatile organic chemical measurements far exceeded surface water standards - 15 times over in one case.

Concentrations of acetone and chloroform outside the blast zone were also within normal limits, it added.

Jiangsu will carry out inspections chemical producers and warehouses, an emergency notice said on Friday.

The notice, published on the news website of the province's Communist Party, said the government would shut down chemical firms found not to be complying with regulations on dangerous chemicals.

Public anger over safety standards has grown in China over industrial accidents, ranging from mining disasters to factory fires, that have marred three decades of swift economic growth.

In 2015, 165 people were killed in explosions at a chemical warehouse in the northern city of Tianjin, one of the world's busiest ports, which is not far from the capital, Beijing.

Those blasts were big enough to be seen by satellites and register on earthquake sensors.

Despite repeated government pledges to tighten safety, disasters have hit chemical plants in particular, with 23 people killed in November in a series of blasts during the delivery of flammable gas at a chemical maker. 

REUTERS



China Company Leaders Visit BP Batam, Exploring Business Development Potential

6 jam lalu

China Company Leaders Visit BP Batam, Exploring Business Development Potential

A total of 30 manufacturing company leaders from China and members of the Suzhou Hunan Business Association visited BP Batam on Wednesday.


China's Xi Jinping to Meet with American Executives on Wednesday, Sources Say

2 hari lalu

China's Xi Jinping to Meet with American Executives on Wednesday, Sources Say

China's President Xi Jinping will meet with American business leaders in Beijing on Wednesday, March 27.


Police Thwart Drug Smuggling Attempt from China

2 hari lalu

Police Thwart Drug Smuggling Attempt from China

The China-based international network smuggled the illicit goods into three jars of energy drinks.


China Changes Tack on Water Politics

3 hari lalu

China Changes Tack on Water Politics

Long a source of tension with its neighbours, China's transboundary rivers are opening opportunities for regional cooperation.


Russia, China Veto US-led UN Resolution on Gaza Ceasefire

5 hari lalu

Russia, China Veto US-led UN Resolution on Gaza Ceasefire

UN turned down a resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza after Russia and China vetoed the measure proposed by the United States.


Indonesia on Alert to Conflict Risks in South China Sea, Govt Says

8 hari lalu

Indonesia on Alert to Conflict Risks in South China Sea, Govt Says

Indonesia would remain vigilant in responding to potential security issues and open conflict in the South China Sea.


Explosion in Pakistan Coal Mine Kills 12 Miners

8 hari lalu

Explosion in Pakistan Coal Mine Kills 12 Miners

Twelve miners were killed and eight rescued after an explosion in a coal mine in southwestern Pakistan, officials said on Wednesday.


IQAir Report Finds Only 7 Countries Meet WHO Air Quality Standard

8 hari lalu

IQAir Report Finds Only 7 Countries Meet WHO Air Quality Standard

IQAir, a Swiss-based air quality monitoring organization, reported that only seven countries meet international air quality standards.


China and India's Intense Contest for Influence

8 hari lalu

China and India's Intense Contest for Influence

India has kept a close watch on China's activities and responded strongly where its security was directly affected.


China's Guangzhou and Indonesia's Central Sulawesi Discuss Investment Opportunities

9 hari lalu

China's Guangzhou and Indonesia's Central Sulawesi Discuss Investment Opportunities

Indonesia's Central Sulawesi provincial government and China's Guangzhou municipal government discussed investment opportunities.