(Corrects name of meteorological organisation sent to the
scene, removes erroneous reference to IAEA, paragraph 5)
* At least 12 firefighters among 50 killed
* Warehouse stored toxic chemicals and gas
* Many foreign firms sustain largely minor damage to
facilities
* Blasts hit iron ore deliveries, tanker operations
* President says those responsible to be "severely handled"
By Sui-Lee Wee and Adam Rose
TIANJIN, China, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Investigators searched
for clues on Friday to identify what caused two huge explosions
at a warehouse used to store toxic chemicals and gas at a busy
port in northeast China, as foreign and local companies assessed
the damage to their operations.
The blasts in the city of Tianjin on Wednesday night killed
at least 50 people, including a dozen fire fighters, state media
said. About 700 people were injured, 71 seriously.
The explosions at the port, the world's 10th largest, were
so big they were seen by satellites in space and registered on
earthquake sensors.
The warehouse was designed to store dangerous and toxic
chemicals, according to an assessment by environmental
inspectors published in 2014. It was storing mainly ammonium
nitrate, potassium nitrate and calcium carbide at the time of
the blasts, according to the police.
A team from the Beijing Regional Specialized Meteorological
Centre (RSMC) under the China Meteorological Administration, as
well as 214 Chinese military nuclear and biochemical materials
specialists, had gone to Tianjin, the official Xinhua news
agency said.
Several thousand residents were moved to 10 nearby schools
after apartment buildings and homes were damaged, mainly by
shockwaves from the explosions, it said. Two fires were still
burning late on Thursday.
Vast areas of the port were devastated, crumpled shipping
containers were thrown around like match sticks, thousands of
new cars were torched and port buildings reduced to burnt-out
shells, Reuters witnesses said. ID:nL3N10O31F
Foreign companies from across the globe were trying to
determine the damage to their facilities in and around the port,
a gateway to northeast China.
The Nikkei newspaper said windows were broken at Toyota
Motor Corp's 7203.T passenger vehicle assembly plant but no
one was hurt. It said numerous other Japanese companies
sustained minor damage to their operations. ID:nWNBS0178D
French carmaker Renault RENA.PA said more than 1,000 of
its cars were damaged but no staff were hurt. Around 4,000 cars
belonging to Hyundai Motor Co 005380.KS were at the site but
damage had not yet been assessed, a spokesman said.
Mining giant BHP Billiton (LONDON:BLT) BHP.AX said its port operations
and shipments were disrupted but its iron ore discharging berth
had not been damaged. ID:nL3N10O2WY
Oil tanker arrivals and departures were also disrupted.
John Deere & Co DE.N , the U.S. farm and construction
equipment maker, said several workers who were at home at the
time were injured, some critically.
PACKAGING "SUB-STANDARD"
Xinhua identified the owner of the warehouse as Tianjin
Dongjiang Port Ruihai International Logistics. The state-backed
China Daily newspaper said its manager had been detained.
The Tianjin Maritime Safety Administration said the company
violated packaging standards during a safety inspection two
years ago. ID:nL5N10O19I
Of 4,325 containers that were checked, five failed the
inspection because packaging was sub-standard, according to a
report posted on the administration's website in January 2014.
The company's website said it was a government-approved firm
specialising in handling "dangerous goods". Phone numbers listed
on its website were disconnected and an email to the company
went unanswered.
President Xi Jinping said those responsible should be
"severely handled".
Tianjin city officials had met recently with companies to
discuss tightening safety standards on the handling of dangerous
chemicals, authorities said.
Industrial accidents are not uncommon in China following
three decades of breakneck economic growth. A blast at an auto
parts factory in eastern China killed 75 people a year ago when
a room filled with metal dust exploded. ID:nL4N0QA0QQ
Wednesday's blasts, which came roughly 30 seconds apart,
sent shockwaves through apartment blocks kilometres away in the
port city of 15 million people. Internet videos showed fireballs
shooting into the sky.
Xinhua said several containers had caught fire beforehand.
The state-run Beijing News earlier cited Tianjin fire
authorities as saying they had lost contact with 36
firefighters. By late afternoon, Xinhua reported 18 were
missing, while 66 were among the hundreds of people being
treated in nearby hospitals.
Anxious residents rushed to hospitals to seek news about
injured loved ones. Dozens of police guarded the entrance of the
TEDA hospital, a Reuters witness said.
The blasts shattered windows in buildings and cars and
knocked down walls in a 2-km radius around the site.
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Map of explosion site: http://link.reuters.com/nag45w
China factory blasts since January 2014
http://link.reuters.com/fag45w
Death toll from China workplace accidents (2005-2014)
http://link.reuters.com/mag45w
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