At least five people were killed and 19 injured Tuesday after a powerful explosion ripped through a chemical plant in eastern China’s Shandong province, according to local emergency officials. Six others remain missing.
The blast occurred around noon at Gaomi Youdao Chemical Co. in the city of Weifang. The company produces pesticides and chemicals for medical use and employs over 500 people, according to corporate filings.
Authorities have not yet confirmed the cause of the explosion.
The force of the blast shattered windows more than three kilometers away, a resident told local media. State broadcaster CCTV said over 230 emergency responders were deployed to the site.
A student at a nearby school, roughly 900 meters from the plant, reported hearing the explosion and seeing dirt-yellow smoke tinged with red. Students were instructed to wear masks due to a strong odor in the air.
Local environmental officials dispatched a team to monitor for possible contamination, though no results have been released yet.
The incident comes less than two weeks after Beijing urged tighter oversight of hazardous materials at chemical industrial parks. Gaomi Youdao had been cited twice for safety risks in 2024 but was later praised for addressing over 800 hazards that year, according to the city’s emergency management bureau.
Workplace safety remains a challenge in China. In 2024, the government recorded nearly 22,000 workplace incidents and over 19,000 deaths. Previous high-profile disasters include a 2015 blast in Tianjin that killed 173 and a 2019 explosion in Jiangsu that left 78 dead
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has issued a stark warning over unsustainable water usage, cautioning that the capital Tehran could face severe sh...
Kazakhstan Temir Zholy, the country's national railway company, has announced plans to construct more than 1,700 kilometers of new rail lines and upgr...
China and the United States have agreed to extend tariff pauses and deepen economic consultations following two days of trade talks in Stockholm, Chin...
You’ve probably seen the headlines: sweeping tariffs, surprise pauses, and a 90-day ticking clock that could reshape global trade. But what exactly ...
China and the United States have agreed to extend tariff pauses and deepen economic consultations following two days of trade talks in Stockholm, Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng said on Tuesday.
China and Russia will stage a joint naval exercise near Vladivostok in August, followed by a Pacific maritime patrol, Beijing’s defence ministry has announced.
Scientists have discovered thriving animal communities living off chemicals, not sunlight, at record depths in the Pacific Ocean’s Kuril-Kamchatka and Aleutian trenches.
A magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on Wednesday, has generated 4-metre (13-foot) tsunami waves, prompting evacuations alerts in Japan, Hawaii and other Pacific regions. Authorities across Japan, Hawaii, and China raced to safeguard millions from back-to-back natural threats.
The world’s biggest dance music festival faces an unexpected setback as a fire destroys its main stage, prompting a last-minute response from organisers determined to keep the party alive in Boom, Belgium.
Australian researchers have created a groundbreaking “biological AI” platform that could revolutionise drug discovery by rapidly evolving molecules within mammalian cells.
Australian researchers have pioneered a low-cost and scalable plasma-based method to produce ammonia gas directly from air, offering a green alternative to the traditional fossil fuel-dependent Haber-Bosch process.
A series of earthquakes have struck Guatemala on Tuesday afternoon, leading authorities to advise residents to evacuate from buildings as a precaution against possible aftershocks.
'Superman' continued to dominate the summer box office, pulling in another $57.25 million in its second weekend, as theatres welcome a wave of blockbuster competition following a challenging few years for the film industry.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has issued a stark warning over unsustainable water usage, cautioning that the capital Tehran could face severe shortages as early as September if consumption is not brought under control, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Thursday.
You’ve probably seen the headlines: sweeping tariffs, surprise pauses, and a 90-day ticking clock that could reshape global trade. But what exactly is Trump’s 90-day pause — and why does it matter for the world economy? Let’s break it down
Lebanon’s push to centralise arms under state control signals a potential turning point in efforts to curb non-state militias and revive stalled diplomacy. The proposed plan ties disarmament to international funding and reconstruction support.
A high-level ministerial meeting between Syria and Israel is scheduled to take place on Thursday in Baku, Azerbaijan, to address rising security concerns in southern Syria, a diplomat told AFP, according to The Times of Israel.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment