There was a loud bang, followed by a massive cloud of smoke: At least 26 people died and more than 60 others were injured on Monday in an explosion at a fireworks factory in in Liuyang, in Hunan province in southeastern China.

Drone footage from Chinese state television revealed the full extent of the destruction on Tuesday: The former factory site has been reduced to rubble. Rescue workers search the debris with excavators, looking for remaining survivors. Due to the risk of further explosions in two powder storage facilities, a safety zone of three kilometers (1.8 miles) was established. All residents within that radius have been evacuated.

Liuyang – the fireworks capital

This is far from the first fireworks tragedy in Liuyang. The city, with a population of about 1.3 million, is the heart of the country's fireworks industry. About 60% of the fireworks sold domestically and as much as 70% of all fireworks exported from China are manufactured in the city's roughly 430 factories.

The city and its surrounding region have seen serious accidents on multiple occasions. Just under a year ago, a similar explosion occurred at another factory, killing nine people. In December 2019, 13 people died in a detonation in the suburb of Chengtanjiang and in December 2014, another twelve died in a factory explosion in Liuyang.

Despite this, the fireworks industry remains a major economic driver for the region: According to estimates, about 500,000 people across Hunan province work in the industry, with the dangerous production work almost exclusively carried out by women, while men typically work in administration.

New regulations, limited enforcement

Official Chinese media report that an average of 400 people died each year between 1986 and 2005 in the production of fireworks in China. This makes the fireworks industry the second most dangerous sector in the country, after coal mining. However, in 2009, the government began to scale back production, tighten safety regulations and — at least officially — step up inspections in Hunan and the surrounding area, which led to a decline in the official death toll.

Last October, the Chinese government adopted even stricter regulations for fireworks manufacturing. They came into effect on May 1, 2026, shortly before the accident in Liuyang. The new measures include stricter guidelines on safety requirements. They also reduce the permissible explosive content for certain products, lower permissible noise levels, restrict the transport of fireworks and ban certain chemical compositions.

Chain reactions in the event of explosions

While safety regulations have been tightened on paper, observers point to problems in practice. According to reports, basic safety rules are still being ignored in many factories. Also, in many places, chemicals required for production are not stored properly, or storage space is overcrowded. It is also not uncommon to find a lack of adequate protective barriers between buildings, which can lead to chain reactions in the event of an explosion.

Many of the substances used are extremely sensitive to friction, heat, or electrostatic charge, so that even a single spark can trigger a disaster. 

Factory owners are reported to often pay bribes to evade inspections. In the past, local authorities have also covered up accidents or deliberately underreported the number of casualties. The official statistics also exclude the large number of accidents occurring in unlicensed backyard workshops, which often operate in residential areas and are completely unregulated.

Competition among these facilities is fierce, prompting many operators to cut corners on safety measures. For example, machinery is often inadequately maintained and employees are not correctly trained. Furthermore, production is ramped up ahead of major events like the Chinese New Year. This pressure to deliver on time frequently leads to negligence and accidents, the BBC has reported.

Officially, Chinese President Xi Jinping has again called for stricter controls and a thorough investigation as a consequence of the latest disaster in Liuyang. In reality, however, failure to enforce these rules in the sprawling production centers surrounding Liuyang means that the deadly risk remains.

This article was originally published in German.