China Chemical Plant Explosion: Massive Blast, Several Casualties Seen In Videos, Photos

UPDATE: 11:10 p.m. EDT - The death toll in the explosion that occurred Thursday at Chenjiagang Tianjiayi Chemical Plant in Jiangsu Province, China, has jumped to 47, Chinese state media reported.

Casualties as a result of the blaze – put out around 3 a.m. local time Friday (3 p.m. EDT Thursday) – were rushed to 16 different hospitals. According to CGTN, 640 people were being treated for injuries, out of which 90 were in a critical condition.

The cause of the explosion was still unknown and being investigated.

UPDATE: 7:10 a.m. EDT - Six people were dead and 30 critically injured in the explosion that occurred Thursday at Chenjiagang Tianjiayi Chemical Plant in Jiangsu Province, China, according to the social media account of local city government, a BBC China reporter said.

UPDATE: 7:05 a.m. EDT – Firefighters are trying to put out the fire that was still burning in seven spots near Chenjiagang Tianjiayi Chemical Plant in Jiangsu Province, China, where an explosion occurred Thursday. A few other factories in the industrial park are believed to have been affected by the blast, CGTN reported.

The local government confirmed the explosion took place at 2:48 p.m. local time (2:48 a.m. EDT) after a fire broke out in a factory producing pesticides.

UPDATE: 7 a.m. EDT - Although the exact number of casualties in the explosion at Chenjiagang Tianjiayi Chemical Plant in Jiangsu Province, China, has not been confirmed, there are children among the injured, CGTN reported. There are several residential buildings as well as schools located near the area of the blast.

Additional rescuers have been called from adjacent cities to help, despite over 80 fire trucks and almost 400 firefighters already working to bring the situation under control.

UPDATE: 6:30 a.m. EDT - According to Chinese international English-language news channel CGTN, 31 people were rescued so far from the Chenjiagang Tianjiayi Chemical Plant in Jiangsu Province, China, where an explosion occurred Thursday at a plant making pesticides. Twelve of those rescued had sustained injuries, the exact nature of which was not known.

The China Earthquake Administration reported a 3.0 magnitude earthquake was detected in Jiangsu, suspected to have been caused by the impact of the explosion, according to South China Morning Post.

According to a BBC reporter in China, as many as 86 fire trucks were sent to the site of the explosion.

Original story:

An explosion in the Chenjiagang Tianjiayi Chemical Plant in Yancheng, Jiangsu Province, rocked the industrial area of eastern China on Thursday.

The blast reportedly took place at 2 p.m. local time (2 a.m. EDT) at the plant, which produced pesticides. Although there were no confirmed casualties, a video shot near the scene showed several people unconscious, lying on the pavement and others injured. The video was not verified by official sources.

According to RT, a spokesman for the Lianyungang City fire brigade confirmed that a fire fighting crew had been deployed to the scene but said, “the exact situation is still unclear.”

The explosion covered tens of kilometers, according to videos of the explosion shared on social media. It has reportedly not affected other factories in the industrial park.

The impact of the explosion shattered windows of residential buildings and a school located in the north of Guanhe River, which flows into the China East Sea. The chemical that caused the explosion was reported to be benzene.

There has been growing public outrage over the lax safety standards for industries in recent years, which has led to an increasing number of mining disasters and factory fires in China. In November, an explosion in a factory zone in northern China killed at least 23 people and left 22 others injured.

This is a developing story.