Massive explosion rocks Chinese port city, at least 300 injured

BEIJING — Chinese state media said a huge explosion at a container port in
the northeastern city of Tianjin has injured at least 300 people and killed at least 13.

The state-run Beijing News said on its website that between 300 and 400 people
had been admitted to hospitals in the city, east of Beijing. It said the
explosion shattered windows and knocked off doors of buildings in the area.

@PDChina @NewsOnTheMin: BREAKING VIDEO: Of the Tianjin China explosion pic.twitter.com/HRD5dXxdkD (via @thelastnext)

— Erik de Vlieger (@EWdeVlieger) August 12, 2015

Officials told multiple outlets contact was lost with two firefighters and six more were injured.

The People’s Daily reported the explosion was felt as far as six miles away.

#Breaking: Explosion happened in E China's Tianjin City Wed. Huge mushroom cloud seen. Quake felt 10 km away. pic.twitter.com/PkgzFb8kyv

— People's Daily,China (@PDChina) August 12, 2015

The People’s Daily also reported there were two blasts just seconds apart. Officials said the first blast was the equivalent of three tons of dynamite, while the second equated to 21 tons of dynamite.

The official China Daily said the explosion occurred in a warehouse for
dangerous materials, and that the logistics company running the warehouse had
proper approval for the business.

Power was knocked out to surrounding buildings and some outlets reported visual cracks in nearby structures.

Tianjin is a major port and industrial area located southeast of Beijing, the nation’s capital. It has a population of 7.5 million people.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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