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China Suspends Work at 214 Factories After Deadly Blast


Firefighter trucks are seen next to a damaged building after an explosion at a factory in Zhoushan, Jiangsu province, China, Aug. 2, 2014.
Firefighter trucks are seen next to a damaged building after an explosion at a factory in Zhoushan, Jiangsu province, China, Aug. 2, 2014.

China has shut 214 factories for safety risks in a city where an explosion at an auto parts factory last week killed 75 people, state media said on Wednesday.

Investigators' preliminary findings show that Kunshan Zhongrong Metal Products Co Ltd, bears the main responsibility for the blast, which also injured 185 people when a flame was lit in a dust-filled room on Saturday.

Based about an hour's drive from Shanghai, Kunshan Zhongrong polishes wheel hubs for automakers including General Motors Co The blast is China's worst industrial accident in a year.

"The suspended factories were found to suffer the same safety risk of dust pollution," the official Xinhua news agency said, citing the government in Suzhou, which includes satellite city Kunshan.

It did not give further details on the factories or what they produced.

Xinhua reported earlier that police took at least two Kunshan Zhongrong representatives into custody.

China's State Council Work Safety Commission on Monday ordered a safety campaign on factories that process aluminum, magnesium, coal, wood, paper, tobacco, cotton and plastic, Xinhua said.

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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