China: Chemical plant blast kills 6, injures 30

Jiangsu province: An explosion that took place at Chenjiagang Tianjiayi chemical plant here on Thursday afternoon killed six people and injured 30.

Al Jazeera confirmed the fatalities citing the city’s official account on social media platform Sina Weibo.
An earthquake of magnitude 3.0 on the Richter scale was also reported and it is speculated that it occurred from the impact of the blast.

The residential building, schools and vehicles in the vicinity of the plant were damaged.

Firefighters and rescue personnel are on the site, however, the reason behind the explosion is yet to be ascertained, said the local authorities.

SCMP quoted a report by Yangtse Evening Post, stating that the explosion took place at the Chenjiagang Tianjiayi chemical plant, which produces pesticides.

The pesticide plant has received six administrative punishments for failures regarding solid waste management, environmental impact assessment and air pollution.

[source_without_link]ANI[/source_without_link]