The official death toll from the oil pipeline explosion which rocked the Shandong city of Qingdao Friday has risen to 52, over 130 people remain in hospital.
Eleven people are missing as rain, debris, and potentially explosive vapours hinder rescue efforts. The blast left tens of thousands of residents without water or electricity. A cold front is expected to arrive today which will push overnight temperatures below freezing, many heating pipes were damaged in the explosion and could take weeks to repair, according to the Qingdao Morning Post.
The explosion occured at around 10:30am on Friday as repair crews were trying to fix a leak which was spilling oil in Jiaozhou Bay.
President Xi Jinping visited Qingdao on Sunday were he inspected rescue efforts and met with survivors and those injured by the blast.
"This accident once again sounded an alarm for us that production safety must be ensured without loosening hold. Otherwise, it will bring irredeemable loss for the country and the people," Xi said, calling for the swift investigation and punishment of anyone found responsible.
"A large-scale work safety check should be launched... with inspectors going deep into the production sites anonymously and unannounced."
"This is not likely to end in a day or two," the president said.
Meanwhile, Sinopec – which owns the pipeline – has rebuked claims that it was too slow to respond to the explosion. "We called the police and firefighters the first time we detected the oil leak," Lü Dapeng, a spokesperson, told the Global Times on Sunday.
Many have questioned why nearby residents were not informed about the leaks and evacuated in the seven hours between when the leak was spotted and the deadly explosion. According to the Beijing Youth Daily, though residents said they saw black liquid on the ground and smelt oil on Friday morning, many were unaware they were living above oil pipelines.
Speaking to the SCMP, a woman surnamed Huang said the leak might have been covered up had the explosion not occurred: "I didn't know the pipeline was this close to us and this dangerous. I think the government owes us an explanation and I want to know how they plan to solve this problem."
Sinopec board chairman Fu Chengyu apologised for the blast Saturday, saying he felt "greatly grieved" to see the huge loss of life and property suffered by the people of Qingdao. The company promised to investigate and give "timely reports".
[Images via Xinhua]
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