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Chinese blast site evacuated

August 15, 2015

Chinese authorities have ordered the evacuation of residents near the site of two huge explosions in the port of Tianjin. There are fears the area could be contaminated by toxic chemicals.

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Tianjin China Explosion Hafen Brand Chemie
Image: Reuters

Flames could be seen burning at the blast site in Tianjin's north on Saturday, as police ordered people within a 3-kilometer (1.8-mile) radius to leave their homes. The official Xinhua News Agency reported that the evacuation was carried out after large amounts of highly poisonous sodium cyanide were identified nearby.

More than 100 people were killed after a giant explosion at a chemical storage facility on Wednesday sparked a blaze that has been burning for days. A series of new blasts and fires broke out on Saturday. About 6,300 people in the city of 15 million have been displaced, with more than 700 injured and an unknown number of firefighters still missing.

Police and security staff were manning checkpoints leading to the blast site on Saturday, while more than 200 nuclear and biochemical experts from the military were sent in.

Tianjin work safety official Gao Huaiyou told a news conference that authorities were still working to identify all the chemicals that were being kept at the storage facility. He also said personnel from sodium cyanide producers had been called in "because they are experts on the chemical's nature and the ways to deal with it."

Dangerous situation

Locals have expressed anger over what they describe as a lack of transparency about the potential dangers from the blast. There are also concerns, reported by state media, that firefighters may have made the situation worse by spraying water on substances - like sodium cyanide - that react explosively to it.

"It is not clear whether a chemical reaction occurred," said Lei Jinde, the head of the firefighting department at Tianjin's public security bureau. He added that the facility was listed as holding ammonium nitrate, potassium nitrate and calcium carbide.

Local authorities have also come under fire for permitting dangerous materials to be stored so close to residential complexes. Under Chinese regulations, warehouses stocking hazardous goods must be at least 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) from surrounding homes, public structures and main roads.

nm/bk (AP, Reuters, AFP, dpa)