3 missing after gas blast in major north Chinese port city of Tianjin
- Cause of explosion following partial building collapse is under investigation, with 11 reported injured
- Breakneck growth at the cost of safety and environmental regulations under the scanner
A gas explosion after a partial building collapse in the northern Chinese port city of Tianjin on Tuesday morning left three people missing and 11 injured.
The incident remains under investigation, but it appears to point to the deterioration of infrastructure following more than three decades of breakneck economic growth, which has vastly boosted living standards while often skirting safety and environmental regulation.
Three floors of the six-storey building collapsed, and the subsequent explosion occurred around 7.15am, state news agency Xinhua reported.
Photos from the scene showed upper storeys of the building caved in, but no obvious damage to neighbouring units.
Tianjin lies roughly an hour by train from the national capital Beijing and has long been one of China’s most developed and international cities.