China Yanjiao Explosion: Multiple Buildings And Vehicles Damaged, Reports Say

Multiple buildings and vehicles were damaged in China’s Yanjiao on Wednesday morning, as media reports claimed a suspected gas explosion.

According to state media Global Times, the explosion occurred at a restaurant on the ground floor of an old residential complex in northern China’s Hebei province.

China Yanjiao Explosion

While the number of casualties remained unclear, injured persons have been rushed to the hospital, it was reported. Videos from the scene circulating online show a huge plume of blue smoke, several damaged sedans, and debris scattered all over the ground. Local authorities have sent an investigation team to the scene and are currently conducting rescue work, reports said.

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“It was a suspected gas explosion at the ground floor restaurant in an old residential area,” state broadcaster CCTV reported. The blast, which occurred around 7:55am (local time), was reported by CCTV to have taken place in a residential area in the village of Xiaozhanggezhuang, Yanjiao, in Sanhe City, less than 50 kilometers east of the capital Beijing. A video on social media showed what appeared to be a building that had completely collapsed and several destroyed cars.

12 Killed in Two Separate Coal Mine Accidents in China

In China, over the past 24 hours, 12 people have been killed in two separate coal mine accidents, as reported by state broadcaster CCTV. The incidents, which are unrelated, are the latest to afflict the industry following recent revisions to mining safety legislation by the government.

According to CCTV, an underground coal bunker owned by a firm in Zhongyang County, Shanxi province, collapsed right before midnight on Monday, resulting in the death of five people with two missing.

The fatal accident in Shanxi occurred after the mining safety regulator of the region issued a notice last month, urging mines to restrain overproduction to prevent accidents. This comes amid a surge in deaths in China’s top producing coal mine region in 2023.

China witnessed a series of deadly coal mine accidents in 2023, prompting the country’s mine safety administration to overhaul an existing law that, according to an official, had “prominent problems”.