Explosion at fireworks factory in southern China kills 9, injures 26

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BEIJING (Reuters) -An explosion at a fireworks factory in the southern Chinese province of Hunan killed nine people and injured 26 others, the state-run Xinhua news agency said on Tuesday.

The blast occurred at around 8:23 a.m. (0023 GMT) local time on Monday at a factory owned by the Hunan Shanzhou Fireworks Company Ltd. in a mountainous area just over 60 km (37.28 miles) north of the city of Changde.

Videos published by state media showed black and grey smoke rising into the sky as fireworks exploded out of a raging fire while emergency services surveyed the scene.

A team from the ministry of emergency management was also sent to the site, Xinhua said.

The blast comes just weeks after an explosion at a chemical plant in northeastern China that killed at least 5 people, and highlights the risk in storage of hazardous and flammable chemicals in the world’s top manufacturer despite years of crackdown on unsafe practices.

Two massive explosions at warehouses in the port city of Tianjin in 2015 killed over 170 people and injured 700, prompting the government to overhaul its chemical storage laws.

It took firefighters more than 20 hours to contain Monday’s blaze, according to local media.

The governor of Hunan province, Mao Weiming, visited the site on Tuesday and urged local authorities to conduct a thorough investigation into the cause of the explosion and hold those responsible to account, local media reported.

Hunan Shanzhou Fireworks Company, headquartered in Changde, was established in 2017 and employs 95 people, according to company information tracker Qichacha. It produces the chemicals used for making explosives, detonators and fireworks.

(Reporting by Joe Cash; Editing by Rachna Uppal)