Eight people have been arrested in China after a gas line exploded in a residential area that killed at least 25 people last weekend, local authorities said on Friday (June 18th).
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The blast occurred Sunday in Shiyan, a town some 1,200 kilometers southwest of Beijing. She destroyed a two-story building and devastated a busy market where traders and locals had breakfast. Videos made by witnesses showed several buildings in ruins. About 2,000 rescuers had been mobilized and 900 people evacuated from surrounding buildings that threatened to collapse.
On Friday, Shiyan City Hall announced the detention of eight suspects for negligence.
Among them is the boss of the company that managed the gas line.
"Security was not optimal"
and
"the operation of the equipment presented serious shortcomings"
, indicated the town hall on its official account, specifying that the investigation was continuing.
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The day before the explosion in Shiyan, eight people were also killed after a toxic product leaked from a chemical plant in southwest China. Industrial accidents are relatively frequent in the country, due to poor compliance with safety rules and a certain laxity of the services supposed to ensure their proper application.