Close to 1,000 firefighters battle fire following China chemical plant explosion

Fourteen people were injured in the second explosion in two years at a chemical plant in the eastern Chinese city of Zhangzhou, authorities said Tuesday. The blast occurred on Monday evening and the 14 injured – including four firefighters – were being treated in hospital, a notice on the provincial government website said, citing provincial authorities. The plant produces paraxylene – a chemical commonly known as PX, used to make fabric in Fujian province.

Do you remember what we were worried about at the time? What we worried about is now the reality in Zhangzhou.

A user on Sina Weibo, a Chinese Twitter equivalent, referring to protests against a PX plant in the northeastern city of Dalian in 2011

Concerns over the safety of plants that make paraxylene, or PX, a chemical used for producing fibers and plastics, have prompted several protests in China in recent years. Exposure to the chemical can cause eye, nose and throat irritation. The plant attracted protests even before it was built. It was slated for the densely populated city of Xiamen in Fujian, but protests in 2007 by residents concerned about potential health hazards succeeded in getting it moved to a less populated area in Zhangzhou.

Asia-Pacific Chemical plant