A fire in a slaughterhouse in north-eastern China has killed at least 119 people, making it one of the country's deadliest factory accidents in decades.
About 350 workers were on site at the slaughterhouse and meat processing plant owned by Baoyuanfeng Poultry company in Mishazi township, Jilin province, when it was rocked by explosions at about 6am on Monday, Chinese state media reported. About 100 workers managed to escape from the plant, while others were trapped inside by a
locked factory gate.
The fire has been mostly extinguished, and rescue work is still underway, the China News Service reported. The death toll is expected to rise, an unnamed provincial government media official told the Associated Press. Police have evacuated residents nearby.
State media blamed the explosions and fire on an electrical problem and a chemical ammonia leak – the gas is commonly used as a coolant in meat processing plants, which are typically kept at near-freezing temperatures. Flammable foam insulation in the plant's walls may have also contributed to the blaze, the Associated Press reported.
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