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An explosion at a fireworks plant in a central Chinese province killed at least 26 people and injured 61 others.
China’s official news agency said the blast occurred at a fireworks plant in Changsha, Hunan province, on Monday afternoon.
Changsha mayor Chen Bozhang said search and rescue at the scene has been completed, but verification of the casualties and identification of the victims are still underway.
Aerial footage showed white smoke billowing in certain areas of the site, with facilities collapsed and damaged.
Nearly 500 rescuers were deployed to the scene, and people in danger zones were evacuated by authorities, citing high risks posed by two black powder warehouses at the site, the report said.
Authorities were investigating the cause of the blast but had taken ‘control measures’ against those in charge of the company, it said, without specifying the measures.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping urged all-out efforts to search for people who are still unaccounted for and save the injured.
He also called on authorities to investigate the cause swiftly and pursue serious accountability.
Risk screening and hazard control, as well as public safety management, will soon be upped after the accident.
To prevent other accidents during the operation, rescuers adopted measures such as spraying and humidification to eliminate potential hazards.
They also deployed three robots to help with the search and rescue operation. Liuyang has a long history of fireworks production.
The Guinness World Records said the first accurately documented firework, the Chinese firecracker, was attributed to Li Tian, a monk who lived near Liuyang during China’s Tang dynasty dating to around 618 to 907.
Li discovered that putting gunpowder in enclosed hollow bamboo stems created loud explosions and bound crackers together to create the traditional New Year firecrackers to drive out evil spirits.
In February, China reported two deadly explosions at fireworks shops around the Lunar New Year period.