62 people face penalties for deadly Baotou steel plant blast

A January explosion at a Baotou steel plant that killed 10 and injured 84 was caused by long-term corrosion and a failure to halt operations after a leak was detected, an official investigation has found. The probe has held 62 people accountable.

The blast occurred on Jan 18 at a Baogang United Steel plate plant in the city in Inner Mongolia. A spherical tank ruptured after corrosion and stress caused a saturated water leak. Production continued for 1.5 hours, allowing pressure to build until the tank disintegrated and triggered a flash explosion.

Seven employees have been arrested while six others face criminal investigation. Disciplinary action by the Communist Party of China and administrative penalties have been proposed for officials from Baogang Group, its subsidiaries and regulators. Four companies face sanctions, while local governments have been ordered to submit self-criticisms.

More than 1,300 rescuers, along with teams from central government, were deployed in the immediate aftermath of the January blast.