The massive blast killed 50, while leaving 700 injured
Beijing: Wednesday night saw a series of lethal explosions in a city in north-eastern China, located nearly 150km from Beijing and home to about 13 million residents. The explosions were estimated to be as big as an earthquake of 2.9 magnitude or equal to 21 tonnes of TNT. The toll is only tentative and was expected to rise far more, the authorities feared. Nearly 75 of the 700 injured are in a critical condition, even as they receive suo moto treatment.
Image Source: CNN
Tinjian is home to the world’s tenth largest port and is known for its secondary chemical industries, which store highly toxic and hazardous chemicals such as sodium cyanide (NaCN), toluene disocyanate (TDI) and others, that would cause harm to the health of the people around and for emergency responders. A forecast of bad weather increased the risk of water and air pollution and the Chinese government was forced to take immediate action to stall the chemical leak. A team of nearly 200 chemical specialists and around 1000 firefighters battled the remaining fires and took preventive measures to avoid secondary fires caused by chemical spread.
The blasts devastated much of the infrastructure in a 2-mile radius of the blast site, as the nearly 90,000 residents felt tremors and experienced shattering glasses and mirrors. Almost 10,000 imported cars and most of the port’s shipping containers and other things were destroyed. Hundreds of people were evacuated from in and around the epicenter of the blasts. The gargantuan explosion was also witnessed by space satellites. Said one immigrant resident, Qian , whose house was exterminated in the explosion, “When I heard the first explosion, I thought we were finished.”
“I thought it was an earthquake,” stated Liu Yue, another resident of Tinjian, “I was extremely scared. I was afraid my family was in danger.”
The casualties included more than a dozen firefighters, while the victims were rushed to the city hospitals. A large number of people donated blood to the victims. So what caused this these horrific blasts? As Thursday came, the it was clear that the blasts had been a repercussion of sparks interacting with inflammable chemicals, yet it was unclear what had started the fire itself. The authorities ordered a high-profile investigation into the same instantly, while the Tinjian Administration of work and Safety was found to have held a meeting recently in order to enforce safety measures. The US Geological Survey registered the blasts as seismic events.
The blast has left thousands of people traumatised and apprehensive, while those who have borne personal losses mourn for their loved ones and await further news.
Sources: The Times of India, CNN
Contributed by: Khushi Desai
Tags: Chemical explosion China Tinjian
