Deadly firework factory blast in Vietnam

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Deadly firework factory blast in Vietnam

Updated: 21:13, Saturday October 12, 2013

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At least 21 people have died and scores more have been injured in an explosion at a fireworks factory in a military complex in northern Vietnam, an army official says.

Plumes of black smoke billowed from the Z121 military facility, around 120 kilometres north of Hanoi, as fireworks exploded uncontrollably for several hours, witnesses said.

'Twenty-one people are dead and 98 others are injured - most of them have sustained burns,' a military rescue official said, requesting anonymity and raising an earlier toll of seven dead.

The explosion prompted the evacuation of some 2000 people living near the area.

'The fire has now been brought under control,' said a police official in Phu Tho province, adding that an investigation into the cause of the accident had been opened.

'The first blast was at 7.55am - and then there were continuous explosions for some hours,' Phi Xuan Trung, chairman of the local Khai Xuan commune, was told the VNExpress news site.

'There was a strong smell of gunpowder, the ground was shaking many kilometres away.'

Residents in Thanh Ba district - where the complex is located - also said they felt the ground shake during the powerful repeated explosions.

'After the first explosion, my house was shaking and the door smashed open,' eye witness Nguyen Nhu Quynh told VNExpress.

Loudspeakers urged people within 15 kilometres of the military facility to leave the area.

One local resident said locals had fled to the Viet Tri township, about 40 kilometres away.

'We have received warnings from authorities that there could be further explosions which could be very destructive,' he said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

In 2010, fireworks being prepared at Hanoi's My Dinh stadium for use in the city's 1000th anniversary celebrations exploded, killing three foreigners and one Vietnamese national.

 

[OneStepCloser]

Toll from Vietnam firework factory blast reaches 24

AFP
October 13, 2013, 5:06 pm

Hanoi (AFP) - Vietnamese police on Sunday raised the death toll from a blast at a fireworks factory to 24 blaming other explosives also stored at the site for the accident which also left many injured.

"At least 24 people were killed -- we have identified 16 bodies," Phu Tho policeman Pham Quang Minh told AFP, raising the number of dead from 21 in Saturday's incident.

Minh said more than 20 people had been injured, lower than the near-100 initially reported to have been hurt in the explosion at a military complex in northern Vietnam.

"According to a preliminary investigation, some explosives self-ignited in storage, which caused a fire and further explosions at the site," he said, adding both fireworks and other explosives were stored at the Z121 military facility.

Plumes of black smoke billowed from the complex, around 120 kilometres (75 miles) north of Hanoi, as fireworks exploded uncontrollably for several hours on Saturday before the blaze was contained.

The explosion prompted the evacuation of some 2,000 people living near the area, most of whom had returned by Sunday.

Minister of Defence Phung Quang Thanh visited the area late Saturday, calling for urgent assistance for the victims' families.

In the hours after the explosion local hospitals were swamped with victims, some with horrific burns. The most critical cases were moved to a specialist burns centre on the outskirts of Hanoi.

In 2010, fireworks being prepared at Hanoi's My Dinh stadium for use in the city's 1,000th anniversary celebrations exploded, killing three foreigners and one Vietnamese national.

Handmade firecrackers were traditionally used as a symbol of good luck to celebrate the Lunar New Year -- known locally as Tet -- and at weddings.

But, in 1994, the government banned the production and use of all firecrackers nationwide for safety reasons, changing instead to fireworks -- which are produced only in state-approved facilities.