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posted by takyon on Sunday August 16 2015, @01:25PM   Printer-friendly
from the free-market dept.

Common Dreams reports:

The death toll from this week's fiery explosions at the Chinese port of Tianjin climbed above 100 on Saturday, while confusion spread over whether authorities had ordered the evacuation of everyone within two miles amid fears of chemical contamination.

[...] Anti-chemical warfare troops have entered the site, according to the BBC.

[...] Two Chinese news outlets, including the state-run The Paper, reported that the warehouse was storing 700 tons of sodium cyanide--70 times more than it should have been holding at one time--and that authorities were rushing to clean it up.

Sodium cyanide is a toxic chemical that can form a flammable gas upon contact with water.

[...] "The company that owned the warehouse where the blasts originated, Rui Hai International Logistics, appears to have violated Chinese law by operating close to apartment buildings and worker dormitories", journalist Andrew Jacobs reports for [NYTimes] (paywall). "Residents say they were unaware that the company was handling dangerous materials."

About 6,300 people have been displaced by the blasts, with around 721 injured and 33 in serious condition, Xinhua news agency said. At least 21 firefighters are reported dead.

Related: Large Warehouse Explosions Injure 300-400 in Tianjin, China

For the adulterated baby formula abuses of 2008 (4 infants dead; 12,892 hospitalized), 2 people were executed. One wonders what will come of this case.


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  • (Score: 2) by Whoever on Monday August 17 2015, @03:05AM

    by Whoever (4524) on Monday August 17 2015, @03:05AM (#223738) Journal

    There is no indication that the material was not supposed to be there. Where did you read that?, Or did you just make it up?

    oh [theguardian.com], really? [dw.com] From this latter link:

    Many were angry that dangerous chemicals had been stored near their homes. Under Chinese regulations, warehouses stocking hazardous goods must be at least 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) from surrounding homes, public structures and main roads.

    Perhaps you should do some investigation of your own [lmgtfy.com]before accusing people of making stuff up because of your own ignorance? It's not that difficult.

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  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Monday August 17 2015, @04:43AM

    by frojack (1554) on Monday August 17 2015, @04:43AM (#223765) Journal

    Maybe try reading TFS, if not TFA:

    Two Chinese news outlets, including the state-run The Paper, reported that the warehouse was storing 700 tons of sodium cyanide--70 times more than it should have been holding at one time

    So CLEARLY they had approval to have SOME Sodium Cyanide, and simply had too much. Approved, by the government.

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    • (Score: 3, Insightful) by zocalo on Monday August 17 2015, @06:49AM

      by zocalo (302) on Monday August 17 2015, @06:49AM (#223802)
      Exactly. 700 tonnes or10 tonnes, it shouldn't have made any difference - the initial firefighters on the scene should not have been using water on the fire (if that is indeed what trigged the explosion). If so, there's more culpability here than just Rui Hai's executives; either someone failed to inform the local fire brigade what was on site do they could deal with it correctly or someone didn't train them properly so they didn't know how to deal with it correctly.
      --
      UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!
    • (Score: 2) by moondrake on Monday August 17 2015, @02:52PM

      by moondrake (2658) on Monday August 17 2015, @02:52PM (#223960)

      well, lets not jump to conclusions. Even IF they had a license (its not clear from that link, perhaps it just means that you can store up to 10 tons if you have approval), the firefighters may have had no knowledge of this. In general (as in labs where I work) storage of dangerous goods has all kind of string attached, but one significant one is clear labeling on doors and cabinets. This because when the building goes up in flame, people trying to put out the fire can make a sensible response (use water in this area or not, walk into this room even when there is minor fire, or simply clear the floor, etc etc).

      Even when NaCN is present, it should usually stored in a safe way (do not know about Chinese regulations related to this however). If it was not stored properly, chances that things go wrong go up drastically.

      When things like this happen, you generally are not going to file a 10 page document to your local government office asking them to provide you a list of the licenses they have.

      This does not mean nobody has made a mistake, but it is silly to assume without more detailed knowledge that it was their own fault.