TOKYO: A firefighter died and 21 others were injured in an explosion at a large chemical plant in western Japan yesterday, a local fire department said.
A tank at major chemical producer Nippon Shokubai’s factory in Himeji city, Hyogo prefecture, exploded after firefighters responded to an emergency call, according to the city’s fire department.
“We have one fatality. Five in serious conditions, and 16 with minor injuries,” said a Himeji fire spokesman.
The fire department received an emergency call from the factory at 2:05 pm (0505 GMT) about a fire.
Thirteen minutes later, firefighters at the scene reported a chemical reaction with a risk of an explosion at the plant, the fire spokesman said.
The exact nature of the explosion, the reason for the original emergency phone call from the factory and other details about the case were not immediately clear, the spokesman added.
Television footage showed a continuing blaze gutting a portion of the factory, filled with dozens of smoke stacks and a layered web of industrial piping.
AFP
