Neglect of duty investigated in Tianjin blasts
August 31, 2015 Category Foreign trade, Weekly
Chinese prosecutors are investigating 10 officials and port executives in Tianjin for alleged neglect of duty in connection with the warehouse explosions which killed at least 145 people. Another 28 are still missing and around 470 people wounded in the blasts are still in hospital. The officials include Wu Dai, Director of the Tianjin Transportation Commission, and Zheng Qingyue, President of Tianjin Port (Group) Co. Customs personnel of the Tianjin Customs District were found to have been slack and irresponsible in supervising the chemical business run by Ruihai. The personnel involved are also suspected of illegally issuing customs clearing permits to the company and allowing it to carry out illegal business activities. An investigation by the Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) has found that Wang Jinwen, a senior official with the Ministry of Transportation, violated the law by helping Tianjin Ruihai International Logistics Co, the owner of the warehouse, pass safety evaluations and obtain approvals to store and transport dangerous chemicals. Wang is being investigated on suspicion of abuse of power. Plans have been submitted by local governments across China to move or upgrade about 1,000 chemical plants after the explosions in Tianjin. The plants had cost about CNY400 billion and money involved in moving or upgrading them would be a major issue. In the face of local opposition, another question is where to move to?
Contaminated soil from the Tianjin blasts is to be stored in a 20,000 square meter leak-proof tank 4 km from the explosion site. A 13-cm “impermeable layer” of sand and bricks will be placed at the bottom and workers are busy lining the tank with leak-proof material. Thousands of tons of dangerous chemicals were stored at the warehouse when it exploded on August 12. Residents living near the blast site have reported bad smells in the past few days.
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