A rescuer at the site of an explosion that killed 26 people and injured 61 in Hunan’s Liuyang city has described the dangerous and extremely difficult clean-up mission amid gunpowder and sparks after he and others were wounded by secondary blasts on Tuesday morning.
An excavator operator surnamed Xiao, who volunteered to aid rescue work at the site of the initial fireworks plant blast, said he had received multiple wounds during a further explosion after scattered explosives were ignited by smouldering embers the day after Monday’s blast.
“I received a call at 5am that the government was dispatching excavators to the rescue. I felt it was my responsibility to go. I arrived at the explosion site at 6am and started digging with more than a dozen drivers,” Xiao told the South China Morning Post on Tuesday.
“The air was filled with a strong burnt gunpowder smell during the rescue, and there were still sporadic sparks at the accident site.”
Xiao said his main task was to work with firefighters to remove remaining black gunpowder to reduce further risk at the explosion site.
“Firefighters used water cannons to cool down and soak the area, and I dug away the buildings and soil that might contain [leftover] black gunpowder,” he said.
“But there were large areas of hazardous material and black powder residue in the soil at the explosion site. I had been digging for five hours and still hadn’t finished, then the second explosion occurred at about 11am,” he said.
“I was very nervous, [knowing] one mistake or stroke of bad luck could lead to further casualties. But it still happened.”
Xiao, who is recovering at Liuyang People’s Hospital, said the shock wave from the secondary explosion shattered all the windows of his excavator, injuring his chest and abdomen, and leaving him with multiple cuts.
He said that although the secondary explosions were “not frequent” during the rescue, they had injured several rescue team members who had risked their lives to ensure the explosion site was safe.
During a press conference on Tuesday afternoon announcing the rescue was done, the mayor of Changsha, Chen Bozhang, said 61 people had been injured, but did not specify how many were injured in subsequent blasts. There was no further update on injury numbers after the press conference.
On Tuesday, all companies producing fireworks and firecrackers in central Hunan Province were ordered to halt production immediately for a comprehensive safety review, the provincial emergency management department said on Tuesday.
Beijing has sent Vice-Premier Zhang Guoqing, who is in charge of the country’s production safety, to supervise rescue and response work in the aftermath of the blast.
While pledging to punish firework producers that violate safety regulations and officials responsible for the fatal incident, Zhang said the State Council, China’s cabinet, would form a team to investigate the cause and help with criminal punishment, official news agency Xinhua said.
According to state broadcaster CCTV on Wednesday morning, the 61 injured mostly suffered soft-tissue contusions, abrasions and bone fractures. Several remain under observation in the ICU after having surgery last night. It said none were in a life-threatening condition.
CCTV said medical staff at hospitals in Liuyang cancelled their May Day holiday plans to attend to blast victims.
Local resident William Zhou told the SCMP his mother, who was working 50 metres (164 feet) from the explosion site, fractured her ankle as she tried to flee the huge blast.
“I was very worried after the explosion … I couldn’t contact my mother for two hours. I rushed to the place but it was ablaze with flames and the smell of burnt gunpowder was overwhelming. Firefighters warned me of the risk of secondary explosions and prevented me from getting any closer,” Zhou said.
Firefighters told him his mother had been rescued and had been taken to hospital by a firefighting team.
Both Zhou and injured excavator operator Xiao said the government had pledged to cover medical expenses for all the victims.