China oil pipeline explosion claims 52 lives, 11 people missing

Beijing: Rescuers said Sunday they found more bodies at the scene of oil pipeline blasts in eastern China, bringing the death toll in one of the country’s worst industrial accidents this year to 52. Four more bodies had been found, according to the information office of the government of the port city of Qingdao. Eleven other people are still missing following Friday’s explosions from a ruptured oil pipeline owned by China’s largest oil refiner, Sinopec. [caption id=“attachment_1246297” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  China explosion: Looking for survivors. AP[/caption] Rescuer efforts were continuing, the information office said. It said earlier that 136 people had been injured, 10 of whom were in critical condition. The pipeline ruptured and leaked for about 15 minutes onto a street and into the sea before it was shut off. Hours later, as workers cleaned up the spill, the oil caught fire and exploded in two locations, the city government said. Sinopec apologized Saturday for the explosions that ripped slabs of pavements and overturned vehicles. It said it would investigate and “give timely reports.” It was China’s second-deadliest industrial accident of the year, after a chicken factory fire in June in northeastern Jilin province that killed 121 people.