At least five dead from Monday's chemical plant blast in China: Xinhua

Reuters

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - The death toll from an explosion at a chemical plant in China's Shandong province late on Monday has risen to five, state news agency Xinhua reported, as China still seeks answers to a far larger blast in the port city of Tianjin earlier last month. The latest blast happened close to midnight in a county roughly 275 km (170 miles) south of Tianjin, where explosions at a warehouse storing dangerous chemicals devastated an industrial park on Aug. 12 and killed at least 145 people. The explosions have raised questions about safety standards in China, where industrial accidents are all too common following three decades of breakneck economic growth. Residents displaced by the huge Tianjin blasts protested in anger last month, demanding compensation. Xinhua said on Wednesday the fire at the Shandong Binyuan Chemical Co Ltd, in Lijin county, was extinguished before dawn on Tuesday, and waste water from the plant had been sealed without any spillover. The cause of the incident was under investigation, it said without giving further details. (Reporting by John Ruwitch; Editing by Paul Tait)