Explosion at fireworks factory in south China kills 11

[News_Editor]

CENXI, CHINA (BNO NEWS) -- Eleven people were killed Friday and more than a dozen others were injured when a large explosion destroyed a fireworks factory in China's southern region of Guangxi, local authorities confirmed on Saturday. The cause was not immediately known.

The accident happened at around 4 p.m. local time at a local fireworks factory in Sanbao Township of Cenxi City, which is located in the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of southern China. The powerful blast destroyed several buildings belonging to the factory and caused a fire that burnt a nearby field.

A spokesperson for the municipal government said two people died at the scene while nine others died after being rushed to an area hospital. All seventeen survivors remained hospitalized on Saturday, including ten people who suffered severe burns and seven others who were "less seriously" injured.

"At present, the medical specialists are making every effort to help the injured," the spokesperson said. The government said it was not immediately known what caused Friday's blast, but both the factory's 46-year-old director and the factory's 66-year-old legal representative were taken into police custody on suspicion of carrying out illegal operations.

Most firework-related accidents happen in China as it is the world's largest manufacturer and exporter of fireworks. The majority of these accidents occur towards the end of the Gregorian calendar's year when demand for fireworks is high in all parts of the world, but demand is also high for the traditional Chinese New Year's holiday.

An explosion at an illegal fireworks factory in southern India in September 2012 killed 40 people and injured 70 others, making it one of the worst ever disasters of its kind. And last month, 24 people were killed and nearly 100 others were injured when a series of explosions devastated a fireworks factory and a surrounding neighborhood in northern Vietnam.

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