Gas pipeline repairs underway at killer blast site
As investigations continue into a massive explosion yesterday that killed four people and injured 47 in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province, media has reported the area is undergoing gas pipeline repairs at the time.
The maintenance work was underway at 222 Taiyuannan Street, the location of the explosion which occurred at 8:20am and reduced nearby buildings to rubble, Southern Metropolis Daily reported today.
A resident said the gas was also temporarily suspended on October 11 due to another construction project.
The first to third stories of buildings that were the most severely damaged by the blast were occupied by restaurants. The upper fourth to seventh stories were residential apartments built in the late 1990s.
Residents living in the damaged area have been accommodated in hotels and the power has been largely restored today.
Taiyuannan Street is not new to such events, having been subjected to two major explosions in the past.
One occurred on May 1, 2012, when a blast hit a shop selling ginseng and Chinese traditional medicines. It buried three people who were later rescued and suffered heavy injuries.
The other happened on March 4, 2013, after gas leaked from a ruptured pipe due to errors made by construction workers.