China warehouse explosion kills scores, many injured

 Picture showing burned-out vehicles in parking-lots       (C)Greg Baker/AFP

At least 44-people people have been confirmed dead and over 500 others injured in a warehouse explosion that rocked the northern Chinese port city of Tianjin yesterday evening. The state media said the blast happened in a warehouse storing “dangerous and chemical goods”.
Videos of the explosion that are being shared widely on Chinese microblogs, showed fireballs lightening up the sky and raining flaming debris on the surrounding area and sending a large plume of smoke high into the sky.

      The blast left over 40 dead and many injured             (C)Jason Lee/Reuters

 A light rail station and some residential buildings near the warehouse were damaged by the explosions. The force of the blast was said to be so great, parked vehicles around were set alight, and scores of high-rise buildings around were extensively damaged.

Evacuees lined up for relief materials distributed at a temporary shelter (C)China Daily/Reuters

A BBC reporter at the scene, John Sudworth said an apartment complex closest to the explosion has eight rows of high-rise tower blocks and in every one of them, almost every window has been blown out. Inside the homes, furniture has been picked up as if by a whirlwind and interior doors lie at angles, ripped off their hinges.

Fireballs were seen lightening up the night

The China Earthquake Networks Centre said the magnitude of the first explosion was the equivalent of detonating three tons of TNT, while the second was the equivalent of 21 tonnes of the explosive.
The cause of the explosion is being investigated by the police.