At least 21 dead, 61 injured in fireworks plant blast in Changsha, Hunan

At least 21 people were killed and 61 injured when an explosion tore through a fireworks plant in Changsha, the capital of China’s Hunan province, state media reported. Xinhua said on Tuesday the blast occurred on Monday afternoon. Nearly 500 rescuers were sent to the site, with evacuations carried out in danger zones as emergency teams searched the area and treated the wounded.

Authorities were investigating the cause of the explosion. According to Xinhua, President Xi Jinping urged efforts to search for missing persons and save the injured. He also called for the aftermath to be handled properly and for the incident to be investigated thoroughly.

Industrial accidents, including in the fireworks sector, are common in China. Last year, an explosion at another fireworks factory in Hunan killed nine people. In 2023, three people were killed after blasts struck residential buildings in the northern city of Tianjin.

In February, separate explosions at fireworks shops in Hubei and Jiangsu provinces killed 12 and eight people. Officials have not provided further details on the cause of the Changsha blast. Rescue and recovery operations and the investigation were ongoing, Xinhua reported.