CHINA: Rescue workers searched roadsides and homes for bodies in south-west China yesterday after the worst gas disaster in the country's history killed at least 191 people, many of whom died in their sleep as a deadly cloud passed through their villages. More than 9,000 residents have been treated for poisoning and some remain in a critical condition.
With the source of the hydrogen sulphide gas still not capped, more than 41,000 people have been evacuated from the area, which the local media have dubbed the "death zone", in Kaixian county, Chongqing.
The gas was released in a blowout at the Chuandongbei natural gas field, about 320 km north-east of Chongqing city late on Tuesday night.
The first to die were two workers killed in the initial explosion when they accidentally drilled through the wall of a gas well near the remote mountain town of Gaoqiao. Toxic fumes then wafted across an area of 10 sq miles, killing hundreds of people and animals living nearby.
Many victims died in their beds. Others were killed as they attempted to flee the foul-smelling cloud. A reporter from the Shanghai Morning Post, who reached the area on Thursday, saw at least six bodies, including those of a young boy and his mother lying, on a road. Pets, livestock and birds - many with white foam dripping from their beaks and nostrils - were seen scattered around the area.
Another paper reported the heroism of a lorry driver who rescued 400 people by making 20 trips in and out of the affected area.
One woman who lived close to the well tried to run from the gas with her five-year-old daughter, but by the time they reached safety the girl had stopped breathing.
Newspaper photos showed bodies lying in onion fields, and rescued children with red faces and inflamed eyes.
According to the Xinhua news agency, 9,185 people were treated for gas poisoning and other injuries. Of the 431 still in hospital last night, 17 remained in a critical condition.
Gas continues to seep from the broken well, but its toxicity has been reduced by burning off the hydrogen. Last night flames could still be seen lighting up the mountainside.
Emergency teams from the China National Petroleum Corporation, which operates the gas field, plan to seal the well with concrete today. - (Guardian service)