A view of the Jilin Chemical Fiber Group Co

 

A ventilation system malfunction caused by a power failure at a giant chemical fiber company in Northeast China's Jilin Province led to five deaths and eight injured due to inhalation of toxic gases Saturday night. 

The power failure caused by a high voltage cable short-circuit happened at the Jilin Chemical Fiber Group Co in Jilin city, Northeast China's Jilin Province, at around 9:30 pm on Saturday, resulting in the malfunction of part of the exhaust equipment at a production workshop, according to the official Sina Weibo account of the Jilin city government. 

Workers inhaled toxic gases during the power cut and the process of restoring power. Although they were rushed to hospital for treatment, five workers died despite efforts to save them and eight were injured but are currently in stable condition, local officials said. 

Presently, the ventilation system of the accident scene has been fully restored and all secondary disaster risks have been eliminated. The local ecological and environmental protection authorities have detected no harmful gas in the factory and its surrounding environment now. 

The cause of the accident is now under investigation. 

The Office of the Work Safety Commission of the State Council and the Ministry of Emergency Management issued safety instructions for work and production resumption after the Spring Festival and urged all local departments to strengthen safety supervision in key industries, pointing out the need to strictly prevent fires and accidents in industrial and trade areas and poisoning and suffocation in restricted working spaces.

Global Times