7 killed, 1 injured in blast at Chinese factory dormitory blamed on illegal explosives

Blast at Chinese factory dormitory kills 7

BEIJING — An explosion at a northern Chinese factory dormitory blamed on illegal explosives killed seven workers and injured one, the state news agency reported Wednesday.

The blast ripped through the four-story building located on the grounds of a factory producing slab stone in the village of Niugang near the northern city of Baoding just before midnight Tuesday, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The bodies of six workers were found buried in the collapsed building, while another died after being sent to the hospital.

Illegal explosives are commonly produced in the surrounding province of Hebei and sold mainly to farmers seeking to earn extra income by quarrying stone.

Authorities cracked down on the practice after a man seeking revenge against his ex-wife and others used illegal explosives to destroy a series of buildings in Hebei’s capital Shijiazhuang in 2001, killing 108 people.