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SCMP Reporter

Police are still searching for the owner of an illegal fireworks factory in Shaanxi province after an explosion on Saturday killed 13 people and injured four.

Several of the factory owner's relatives were among those in the three-storey building in Jijiahe village in Shanyang county when the explosion occurred. The building was levelled, killing everyone inside.

A county official said: 'The victims are all villagers in the neighbourhood. Most of them are women but not all of them work there. Some are the owner's relatives. A 12-year-old girl happened to be visiting her grandmother when the explosion happened. Both of them died. The owner's mother was also killed.'

Four people were injured, including the owner's wife.

The owner, Liu Mingchao, fled on his motorcycle shortly after directing rescue work.

'The cause of the accident is still not known. But police have set up barricades in the county to track down the owner,' the official said.

She said that the county government would carry out safety checks on other fireworks factories.  Liu had illegally operated two other factories, both of which were shut down by the government, the official added.

The high demand for fireworks and the easy availability of explosives make China one of the world's biggest fireworks producers. But many of the factories are unlicensed or have abysmal safety standards.

Despite repeated vows to crack down on these factories, especially after March last year when at least 42 students were killed in an explosion at a village school in Jiangxi province where they were forced to make firecrackers, many factories have resumed operations.

Some small unlicensed factories operate discreetly from the owners' homes.



Fireworks factory boss hunted after fatal blast