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At least 5 dead, 6 missing after China chemical plant explosion

More than 200 emergency workers were sent to the scene, China's emergency management authority said in a statement released Tuesday afternoon.

This photo provided on May 27, 2025, by a local resident who declined to give his name out of concern for retaliation shows an explosion at a chemical plant in China's eastern Shandong province. (AP)

A blast at a chemical plant in eastern China’s Shandong province killed at least five people and left six missing, state news agency Xinhua reported on Tuesday. 19 people were injured in the explosion, which happened late Tuesday morning at a plant owned by Shandong Youdao Chemical in the city of Weifang.

The explosion happened just before noon and shook part of the facility, Reuters said. Videos shared on Chinese social media showed thick black and orange smoke rising into the sky. In one of the videos, windows of nearby buildings were blown out by the force of the blast.

🇨🇳 An explosion occurred at a chemical plant in eastern China, — South China Morning Post.

❗️The plant belongs to Shandong Youdao Chemical, which is the world’s largest producer of the pesticide chlorpyrifos, producing about 11 thousand tons of the substance per year. pic.twitter.com/XSNCpCX9ed

— MAKS 25 🇺🇦👀 (@Maks_NAFO_FELLA) May 27, 2025

More than 200 emergency workers were sent to the scene, China’s emergency management authority said in a statement released Tuesday afternoon.

Footage from a drone, published by The Beijing News a government-backed outlet showed smoke coming not only from the chemical plant but also from another nearby site that was not identified.

The Weifang Ecological Environment Bureau sent terms to the area to check for pollution following the explosion. As of Tuesday night, no test results had been released. In the meantime, authorities advised residents nearby to wear masks, according to The Beijing News, Reuters said.

Shandong Youdao Chemical is part of Himile Group. The parent company also owns Himile Mechanical, which is publicly listed. Shares of Himile Mechanical dropped nearly 3.6 per cent on Tuesday, Reuters reported.

According to its website, Youdao was set up in August 2019 and is based in the Gaomi Renhe chemical park in Weifang. The plant spans over 47 hectares and employs more than 300 people. The company makes chemical ingredients used in products like pesticides and medicines.

The Baidu Maps app shows several other factories near the Youdao plant, including companies that produce textiles, machinery and industrial coatings.

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Chemical plant explosions have happened in China before. In 2015, two huge blasts at a warehouse storing chemicals in Tianjin killed more than 170 people and injured hundreds more. That event led the government to tighten safety rules around chemical storage. Other explosions have taken place in recent years, including one in Ningxia in 2024 and another in Jiangxi in 2023.

In 2015, an explosion at a chemical plant in Shandong killed 13 people, Reuters added.

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