The local government has called on citizens to stay clear of the site, saying they could disrupt emergency operations. China has been rocked by several deadly industrial accidents, sparking anger in affected communities.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/Xinhua
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An explosion at a chemical plant on Wednesday killed 23 people and injured 22 others in the city of Zhangjiakou, which is set to host the 2022 Winter Olympic Games.
Public anger has grown in China following several deadly industrial accidents ranging from chemical plant blasts to mining disasters over the past decade.
What we know so far:
The blast occurred at a loading dock operated by the Hebei Shenghua Chemical Industry Co. Ltd.
It set 50 vehicles ablaze, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.
The local government urged citizens to "not go to the site to watch," saying it could disrupt emergency response efforts.
Police have yet to determine the cause of the blast.
DW looks at major accidental explosions worldwide involving fire, explosives, boiling liquids, fuels and chemical reactions.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/O. Stratmann
Tianjin warehouse blasts
Late on August 12, 2015, two explosions occurred at warehouses containing toxic chemicals and gas in the Chinese port city of Tianjin. According to state media, one of the blasts was equivalent to detonating 21 tons of TNT. The explosions killed 44 people and left more than 500 injured. Officials said just a week ago they had discussed tightening safety standards with companies at the port.
Image: Reuters
Lac Megantic train explosion
On July 6, 2013, a train of 73 tank cars of light crude oil derailed in the Canadian town of Lac Megantic. Left unattended at night, a small fire started, the brakes failed and the train rolled down a slight incline. The fire ignited the oil. There were two large blasts and several smaller explosions. Forty-seven people died in the disaster, and a good part of the downtown area was destroyed.
Image: François Laplante-Delagrave/AFP/Getty Images
Volatile fertilizer in Texas
A blast following a fire at the West Fertilizer Company plant in the town of West, Texas killed 15 people and hurt more than 200 on April 17, 2013. The explosion flattened houses, left a huge crater and was so powerful that the United States Geological Survey registered it as a 2.1-magnitude earthquake.
Image: Getty Images/E. Schlegel
Russian military range up in smoke
Four thousand tons of military ammunition exploded at a depot at the Donguz test site in Central Russia on October 8–9, 2012. Thousands of people from two local towns were evacuated, and the shockwaves were felt as far away as Orenburg, 40 km from the scene. There were no casualties.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/S. Medvedev
Fireballs in Japan
The 8.9 magnitude Tohoku earthquake in Japan on March 11, 2011, badly damaged chemical and oil complexes on the Pacific Ocean. Red hot fireballs resulted from boiling liquid vapor explosions at the Cosmo Oil refinery in Chiba. Storage tanks were heavily damaged or burnt.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Cyprus munitions dump
An explosion presumably caused by a fire ripped through the Evangelos Florakis naval base munition dump in southern Cyprus on July 11, 2011. Dozens of people were injured, and at least 12 were killed. The explosion destroyed the base, knocked out the island's largest power plant and caused extensive damage to a neighboring community and a nearby popular holiday resort.
Image: dapd
Maputo armory explosion
The Mozambican capital of Maputo was rocked for hours by a series of explosions on March 22, 2007. People fled in terror from the blasts at the country's largest ammunitions depot – an incident that was eventually blamed on high temperatures. Officials confirmed 96 dead and several hundred injured.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Sa Da Bandeira
Enschede fireworks disaster
A massive explosion occurred at a fireworks factory on May 13, 2000, in the Dutch city of Enschede. Twenty-three people died in Europe's worst fireworks disaster, and 947 were injured. Hundreds of homes were leveled and more than 1,000 other buildings damaged, and the Roombeek neighborhood was completely ravaged.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/O. Stratmann
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'Almost daily'
For years, China has been rocked by industrial accidents caused by loose enforcement of safety standards. In 2015, a massive explosion at a site in Tianjin killed more than 170 people. The blast was traced back to improperly stored chemicals.
Earlier this month, 52 people fell ill following a major chemical spill in Fujian province. The toxic chemical C9 leak occurred while workers were loading barrels onto a tanker.
With authorities wary of social unrest, Beijing has vowed to improve industrial safety standards and increase oversight. But environmentalists say little has changed and workers are still at risk.
"Tragic accidents occur on an almost daily basis," said Greenpeace researcher Cheng Qian in a 2016 report. "The government must take urgent action to manage chemicals in a sound manner, provide a safety net for workers and citizens, and protect ecologically important areas across the country."
