An explosion at a fireworks plant in China kills at least 26 people and
injures dozens of others
[May 05, 2026]
By E. EDUARDO CASTILLO and KANIS LEUNG
BEIJING (AP) — An explosion at a fireworks plant in a central Chinese
province killed at least 26 people and injured 61 others, state media
reported Tuesday, prompting the halting of all firework manufacturing
near the site.
The blast occurred at a fireworks plant in the city of Changsha in Hunan
province on Monday afternoon, China’s official news agency Xinhua said.
State media China Daily said that the plant was operated by the Huasheng
Fireworks Manufacturing and Display Co. in the Changsha-administered,
county-level city of Liuyang, a prominent fireworks powerhouse in the
country.
Changsha mayor Chen Bozhang said at a media briefing that a search and
rescue operation at the scene largely has been completed, but
verification of the casualties and identification of the victims was
still underway.
Chen said that the local government expressed condolences for the
victims and apologized to society, including the families and injured
people.
“We feel extremely pained and deeply remorseful,” he said.
Ding Weiming, the Changsha Emergency Management Bureau's party
secretary, said that the site had a large amount of products or
semifinished products catching fire, causing continuous, sporadic
blasts.
Large quantities of gunpowder stored in the warehouse area also
threatened the safety of rescue teams, while the collapse of walls,
columns and the roof in the factory area created ruins, with people
trapped and routes blocked, he said.
All fireworks and firecracker manufacturers in Liuyang have been ordered
to halt production, local media reported said.
Aerial footage from state broadcaster CCTV on Tuesday showed white smoke
billowing in certain areas of the site, with facilities collapsed or
damaged.
Hundreds of rescuers were deployed to the scene and residents in danger
zones were evacuated by authorities, citing high risks from two black
powder warehouses near the explosion site, the Xinhua report said.
Authorities were investigating the cause of the blast and police have
detained the person in charge of the company, Xinhua said.
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This photo released by Xinhua News Agency, this aerial drone photo
taken May 5, 2026 shows rescuers working on site after an explosion
at a fireworks plant in Guandu Town of Liuyang, central China's
Hunan Province. (Chen Sihan/Xinhua via AP)
Chinese President Xi Jinping urged “all-out efforts” to search for
people who are still unaccounted for and to save the injured. He
called on authorities to investigate the cause swiftly and pursue
serious accountability, the report said. Xi also ordered effective
risk screening and hazard control in key industries and the
strengthening of public safety management.
To prevent other accidents during the operation, rescuers adopted
measures such as spraying and humidification to eliminate potential
hazards.
They also deployed several robots to help with the search and rescue
operation.
Liuyang has a long history of fireworks production. The Guinness
World Records organization said that the first accurately documented
firework, the Chinese firecracker, was attributed to Li Tian, a monk
who lived near Liuyang during China’s Tang dynasty dating to around
618 to 907 C.E.
Li discovered that putting gunpowder in enclosed hollow bamboo stems
created loud explosions and bound crackers together to create the
traditional new year firecrackers to drive out evil spirits,
Guinness said.
In February, China reported two deadly explosions at fireworks shops
around the Lunar New Year period.
___
Leung reported from Hong Kong. Olivia Zhang contributed to this
report.
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