Blast rocks Chinese city, two months after massive explosions
The Chinese city of Tianjin has been rattled by another warehouse blast, two months after massive explosions in the area left 173 people dead or missing.
The official Xinhua News Agency reported that a blast hit a warehouse for alcohol materials in the city and started a fire.
No casualties have been reported, Tianjin government's news office said in an online statement.
It said 3,000kg of alcohol were being stored in the 700 square metre warehouse, along with 1,000kg of acetic acid, which can be used in the making of plastics and pharmaceuticals.
The warehouse had been illegally rented from a local resident by a company registered in nearby Hebei province, the Tianjin government said.
It said the incident posed no hazard to people or the environment.
Workplace safety hazards abound in China. In August, a warehouse complex storing large amounts of hazardous chemicals caught fire and exploded in Tianjin, killing 165 and leaving eight missing.
The disaster raised questions about corruption and government efficiency.
Investigations into the blasts at the Ruihai International Logistics warehouses showed they were located closer to homes than permitted, and stored much more hazardous material than authorised, including 700 tons of highly toxic sodium cyanide.
