Thirteen people were killed and one seriously injured in an
explosion at a power plant in Wu'an City in north China's Hebei
Province when the plant began trial operation on Thursday
afternoon.
The blast took place in the state-owned China Xinxing Cast Group
Co. Ltd. around 4:10 PM, according to sources from the Hebei
provincial production safety authority.
All but one of the injured are in stable condition. The total
number of injured is not known.
The power plant was built to generate electricity by using waste
gas from factories. It was scheduled to start operations on
September 28, according to plant officials.
Leading officials of provincial and local governments rushed to
the spot soon after the blast. Causes of the accident are still
under investigation.
(Xinhua News Agency September 24, 2004)