Tianjin explosions: police order mass evacuations amid further blasts

The Guardian ^ | Saturday 15 August 2015 08.34 EDT | Fergus Ryan

[wtd]

• Tianjin explosions: police order mass evacuations amid further blasts

  Everyone within three kilometres of blast site in China urged to get out amid fears of poisoning by sodium cyanide as death toll rises to 85

  Armed police are evacuating everyone within three kilometres (1.9 miles) of the Tianjin blast site in China after fires reignited and seven to eight explosions rocked the area on Saturday, local media reported.

  Hundreds of evacuees housed at a temporary shelter for the homeless in a nearby primary school were also being moved away, amid fears that highly toxic chemical sodium cyanide discovered at the site could lead to more casualties.

  “Out of consideration for toxic substances spreading, the masses nearby have been asked to evacuate,” Xinhua said.

[wtd]

I caught a glimpse of a video report on the clean-up/aftermath in Tianjin early yesterday on Fox&Friends. The visual showed folks with brooms sweeping the thick layer of ash and debris - without any safety gear beyond a few wearing a scarf across the bridge of the nose/mouth. I have not been able to locate that video clip.

More:

• Reuters link:

  There were about seven small explosions in the area on Saturday, according to a post on the micro-blog of CCTV. A fresh blaze ignited cars in a parking lot next to the blast site. The cause was not immediately clear. State media carried reports of other fires in the area.

  Also, mention is made of rescued firefighter. Here is footage specifically of that claim...

• CCTV: Video Footage of First Tianjin Blast Firefighter Survivor

  Seems unlikely given the blasted remains surrounding the surviving fire fighter in that imagery. The shoe-less nearly naked survivor is lying betwixt smouldering scorched metal sheets with barely a scratch or visible burn on him. Perhaps he was knocked silly, stripped from his gear and wandered around until he collapsed.

  *****

  FWIW:

• 3D animation and explanation about the explosion in Tianjin

  *****

• Firehouse: Chinese Firefighters Paid High Price in Blasts that Water May Have Triggered

  ""...state media have reported. Several others are still missing.

  The blast occurred at a port warehouse owned by the 4-year-old Tianjin Ruihai International Logistics company. State-run media said that the facility held "dangerous materials," possibly including the chemical calcium carbide, which reacts violently to water.

  Yet when firefighters were called to the warehouse at 10:50 on Wednesday night, they attempted to douse a fire there with water cannons, according to several reports in Chinese media. Minutes later, two blasts lighted up the sky that together had the force of 53 Tomahawk cruise missiles exploding, state-run media reported.

  Beijing has dispatched 200 hazardous-chemical specialists -- many of them in full protective suits and gas masks -- to investigate the cause of the blast.

  One firefighter told the liberal newspaper Southern Weekend that his brigade was never warned against the use of water.

  Propaganda authorities required local media outlets to use "only copy from Xinhua [news service] and authoritative departments and media," according to a censorship directive leaked to the news website China Digital Times. Officials said at a news conference Friday that even the names of the chemicals in the warehouse "cannot be determined at the moment," contradicting previous reports.

  The Southern Weekend report has been taken offline."

  "More exploding Hyundias? Hope mine doesn't." -McGruff

  "Hyundai is Korean." - shibumi

• KoreaTimes: Tianjin blasts hit Hyundai Motor

  "Huge explosions at a warehouse in Tianjin, China, have destroyed cars worth about 160 billion won ($136 million) from Hyundai Motor, Korea's top car maker, according to sources, Friday.

  "About 4,000 Hyundai Motor-branded cars were at the site," an industry official said.

  "They were all luxury models such as Genesis sedans. Assuming that all stacked cars were burnt, total losses will go up to 160 billion won."