Four people were killed and?21 injured in a
furnace blast at a chemical plant on Wednesday afternoon in east
China's Jiangxi
Province.
A fire broke out at the nitration workshop section
of the Jiujiang Fuda Industrial Co. Ltd. in Hukou County at 3:52
PM.
The furnace exploded about?10 minutes later,
killing two people on the spot and injuring 23, two of whom died
later in hospital.
An investigation into the cause of the accident is
underway.
Meanwhile, more than 50 miners were trapped in a
coal mine in the northern province of Hebei
after a gas blast early on Thursday morning, provincial coal mine
supervision authorities said.
The accident took place at around 3:00 AM on
Thursday in the Nuan'erhe Colliery in Chengde City.
The condition of the trapped miners remains
unknown.
Governor Ji
Yunshi and other government officials have rushed to the site
to direct rescue efforts and investigate the cause of the
blast.
(Xinhua News Agency May 19, 2005)