At least 35 people were killed and a four-storey building flattened by an explosion at a fireworks factory in Liaoning province yesterday.
The blast was reported at around 10am in Shuangmiaozi township. By late yesterday afternoon, the State Administration of Safety Production and Supervision said 35 bodies had been found at the scene. Rescue workers were still searching for survivors.
Of the 14 injured people taken to Changtu county hospital, at least five were in serious condition. A hospital official said one patient was on the verge of death, suffering from throat injuries and facial burns. Others suffered broken bones, burns and severed fingers.
A hospital spokeswoman said the majority of the casualties were workers, but one man was injured by glass fragments as he visited a friend in a nearby residential building.
The blast split open the roof of the four-storey office building where the Changtu Safe Environment Colour and Noise Company factory was located. It flattened two workshops and set homes ablaze 100 metres away.
Authorities are investigating the cause of the explosion.