The dangerous chemicals stored in the warehouse that exploded on Wednesday local time in Tianjin Port, China, cannot be determined at the moment, authorities said at a press conference on Friday, reports state news agency Xinhua.
Gao Huaiyou, deputy director of Tianjin’s work safety watchdog, cited major discrepancies between the accounts of company management and customs, and damage to the company’s office as the reasons they are unable to identify the chemicals.
Cargo is stored in a warehouse for no more than 40 days before being transferred elsewhere, Gao said, adding that the blast site has been redesigned to contain dangerous chemicals.
A team of 217 military specialists in nuclear and biochemical materials arrived in Tianjin on Thursday, a day after the August 12 explosions, to test for toxic gases, according to the news agency.
Toxins have reportedly been detected in the air, including toluene and chloroform that can cause damage to the central nervous system, heart trouble, and even death.
Two huge blasts ripped through a chemical warehouse in Binhai New Area in north China’s Tianjin Municipality at around 11:30 p.m. Wednesday, causing deaths, injuries, and building damage for kilometers.
The enormous blasts have killed 50 people, including 17 firefighters. A total of 701 were injured, of whom 70 remain in critical condition.
On Thursday, authorities prohibited vessels carrying oil and hazardous products from entering the port. Tianjin port is the world’s tenth largest by container volume and the seventh largest in China and handles vast quantities of metal ore, coal, steel, cars, and crude oil.
Latest reports said fires were still burning at the site some 36 hours after the blasts, and more than 1,000 firefighters and 140 fire engines were still at the scene on Friday.
Photo: Arrorro
