Second round of explosions rock Tianjin, 85 dead

An environmental expert says evacuation of the area around Wednesdays mammoth warehouse blast in the Chinese port city of Tianjin is the “main priority, ” and warned of the explosions long term consequences.

“Those who have lost their lives as well as all those touched by this catastrophe are in my prayers”, Francis said during angelus prayers at St Peter’s in Rome during the Catholic Feast of the Assumption, which marks Christ’s mother Mary’s ascent to heaven.

(Tianjin, China) – Officials in Tianjin, China are warning people to evacuate due to fears toxins from big explosions at a chemical warehouse could spread.

The fire intensified at the hazardous goods storage facility on Saturday and a series of new explosions sent a thick black column of smoke into the air, the official Xinhua news agency said.

The Tianjin Municipal Government has confirmed that the death toll from two powerful blasts in the port area of the city on Wednesday night has risen to 85.

A firefighter killed in the massive explosions that rocked Tianjin in China had only been married for 12 days, it has been revealed.

Residents and relatives were prevented from entering an official press conference on Saturday and could be heard shouting outside.

As details of the blasts and the rescue efforts surface, members of the public have been raising questions about whether fire commanders had erred in prematurely sending firefighters into a highly unsafe zone and using water to put out flames on the site known to have stored a variety of hazardous chemicals, including sodium cyanide and calcium carbide, which become flammable on contact with water.

“Nobody has told us anything, we’re in the dark, there is no news at all”, screamed one middle-aged woman, as she was dragged away by security personnel.

China has a dismal industrial safety record and the disaster has raised fears of toxic contamination after officials said they were unable to identify precisely what chemicals were at the site at the time.

Volunteers and paramilitary soldiers wearing masks stand on patrol outside a temporary shelter after … It triggered another larger blast 30 minutes later that was the equivalent of 21 tons of TNT, the New York Times reported.

Popular verified bloggers had also made “irresponsible” comments about the blasts, such as comparing them to the atomic bombs dropped on Japan during World War II, it added.