Explosion at China chemical plant kills 5, leaves 6 missing

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

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