Chinese authorities ended the search for the remaining eight missing in a massive chemical warehouse explosion last month, setting the final death toll at 173 in China’s worst industrial disaster in years.
The announcement on the Tianjin city government’s microblog said there was no hope of finding the eight people and the court is going to start issuing death certificates.
“After thorough investigations by all parties, it is certain that there is no possibility of survivors,” said the statement, posted late on Friday night.
Photo: Reuters
The eight include five firefighters, underscoring the explosion’s status as the worst ever disaster for Chinese first responders, more than 100 of whom were killed, including police officers. Among firefighters, 104 were killed.
Investigations into the Aug. 12 blasts at the Ruihai International Logistics warehouses showed they were located closer to homes than permitted and stored much more hazardous material than authorized, including 700 tonnes of highly toxic sodium cyanide.
A series of massive explosions late at night shattered windows and tore facades off buildings for kilometers around, while launching debris including heavy steel storage canisters into nearby communities with the force of an artillery shell. Disgruntled homeowners have held numerous protests demanding the government buy back their apartments, saying they are unlivable.
The disaster has raised questions about corruption and government efficiency, potentially tarnishing the communist government led by Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平), who has made those two issues a hallmark of his administration.
Authorities are investigating malfeasance in the issuing of permits and regulation of the company, and have detained 12 of its employees and executives. They include the primary owner, who was on the board of a state-owned company and kept his ownership of Ruihai hidden as a silent partner. Also detained as part of the investigation are 11 government officials, while State Administration of Work Safety director Yang Dongliang (楊棟樑) has been placed under investigation for corruption.
Yang had previously worked for 18 years in Tianjin in state industry and local government, rising to executive vice mayor. Authorities say they have sealed all waterways leading out of the blast zone to curb cyanide contamination as teams in hazmat suits clean up hazardous debris.
According to the Tianjin Environmental Protection Bureau, water samples inside the disaster zone have shown levels of cyanide as high as 20 times above that considered safe. No cyanide has been detected in nearby seawater or areas outside the 3km radius quarantine zone.
Nearly half of China’s major cities are suffering “moderate to severe” levels of subsidence, putting millions of people at risk of flooding, especially as sea levels rise, according to a study of nationwide satellite data released yesterday. The authors of the paper, published by the journal Science, found that 45 percent of China’s urban land was sinking faster than 3mm per year, with 16 percent at more than 10mm per year, driven not only by declining water tables, but also the sheer weight of the built environment. With China’s urban population already in excess of 900 million people, “even a small portion
UNSETTLING IMAGES: The scene took place in front of TV crews covering the Trump trial, with a CNN anchor calling it an ‘emotional and unbelievably disturbing moment’ A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former US president Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said yesterday. The New York City Police Department (NYPD) said the man was declared dead by staff at an area hospital. The man was in Collect Pond Park at about 1:30pm on Friday when he took out pamphlets espousing conspiracy theories, tossed them around, then doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire, officials and witnesses said. A large number of police officers were nearby when it happened. Some officers and bystanders rushed
HYPOCRISY? The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs yesterday asked whether Biden was talking about China or the US when he used the word ‘xenophobic’ US President Joe Biden on Wednesday called for a hike in steel tariffs on China, accusing Beijing of cheating as he spoke at a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Biden accused China of xenophobia, too, in a speech to union members in Pittsburgh. “They’re not competing, they’re cheating. They’re cheating and we’ve seen the damage here in America,” Biden said. Chinese steel companies “don’t need to worry about making a profit because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily,” he said. Biden said he had called for the US Trade Representative to triple the tariff rates for Chinese steel and aluminum if Beijing was
Beijing is continuing to commit genocide and crimes against humanity against Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities in its western Xinjiang province, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a report published on Monday, ahead of his planned visit to China this week. The State Department’s annual human rights report, which documents abuses recorded all over the world during the previous calendar year, repeated language from previous years on the treatment of Muslims in Xinjiang, but the publication raises the issue ahead of delicate talks, including on the war in Ukraine and global trade, between the top U.S. diplomat and Chinese