8 dead in biotech workshop blast in central China

Eight people have been confirmed dead in a blast at a biotechnology factory in central China early on Saturday.

The explosion ripped through a workshop in Shanyin county, Shanxi province, operated by Jiapeng Biotechnology, a company involved in bio-feed, coal and related products, building materials, and paint manufacturing.

The county government said the rescue operation had concluded and the company’s legal representative had been taken into police custody.

Officials from Shuozhou, the city overseeing the county, were investigating the cause of the incident, municipal authorities said.

Emergency crews were still at the site on Sunday, where dark yellow smoke continued to rise from the wreckage, state news agency Xinhua reported.…Read more by Zhang Tong