The death toll from Tianjin’s twin blasts has now reached 112, testing China’s emergency skills that are being challenged by an unfolding industrial disaster that continues to mutate.
The fatalities resulting from the mega-explosions in a hazardous-product warehouse are expected to mount as 95 people are reported missing and 25 people are still in a critical condition on account of their injuries.
Containing the fall-out of Wednesday’s blasts, which generated seismic tremors which were felt 10 kilometers away, is particularly hard, as the disaster has several dimensions, including environmental security, as air toxicity and contamination of water cycle have emerged as prime concerns.
The opacity of information regarding the exact nature and quantum of remnant chemicals that are stored in the stricken warehouse has led to the mobilisation of the specialists in Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) warfare for effective damage control.
Thirty more specialist firemen have now joined the 214 soldiers of the NBC team who are at ground zero to tackle the chemical fallout of the disaster. They are racing against time to complete the cleanup before the arrival of rains, as water from the showers could react with the chemicals and produce toxic gases.
According to local media reports, around 700 tonnes of highly toxic sodium cyanide is still to be safely removed from the warehouse. Rescue workers are apparently making extensive use of hydrogen peroxide to treat sodium cyanide.
A task force has been marshalled to prevent the toxic chemicals from entering the sewage system.
The environment group Greenpeace said its tests showed that water supplies were not severely contaminated with cyanide. However, it did not rule out presence of other hazardous chemicals in the water.
Doctors are having a tough time treating patients, who have suffered complex injuries. Apart from suffering scalding or burns, many of the patients are victims of blast injuries and chemical poisoning. Despite the scale of the disaster, the China Insurance Regulatory Commission has issued directions for the quick settlement of insurance claims.
Notwithstanding strong governmental intervention, which has included the visit of Prime Minister Li Keqiang to the disaster site, authorities have faced the anger of the distressed relatives of the victims, especially the missing.
On Saturday, irate relatives of missing fire-fighters stormed a media conference seeking more information about their loved ones.
In a statement, the State Council Work Safety Commission on Friday acknowledged poor safety awareness among businesses, lax implementation of safety regulations, irregular practices among workers and weak emergency responses to incidents.
As authorities go all out for damage control, a decision has been taken that ahead of September 6 when a military parade and World Athletic Championships would have been held, companies will not produce any volatile chemicals in Beijing. Safety checks have also been ordered on hydrogen generation stations, ammonia producing plants, fuel tanks, warehouses storing volatile chemicals and explosives as well as coal pulverising systems.
