The water in Quangang, East China's Fujian Province is contaminated with pollutants after a vessel spilled nearly 7 tons of C9 aromatics over the weekend.Photo: IC





The government of Quanzhou in East China's Fujian Province on Sunday released a report on a recent chemical spill incident, exposing that the actual leak of C9 aromatics was 69.1 tons, nearly 10 times higher than the initially released figure of "6.97 tons."

Having colluded to conceal the actually leak amount, a number of officials of Quangang district as well as the port where the incident took place on November 3, have been suspended from their posts, according to the report.

The suspended officials include Chen Xiangcheng, a member of the district Party committee, and Zhu Huiyang, the head of the district transport bureau.

The accident occurred when the tube connecting a vessel codenamed Tiantong 1, which is run by the Ningbo Zhoushan Tongzhou Shipping Company, and the Donggang Petrochemical Corporation-administrated wharf in Quangang broke on November 3, around 4 pm, according to the government report.

The figure of "6.97 tons" was first released by the Donggang Petrochemical Corporation, under the direction of the company's legal representative, whose surname is Huang. Such figure was later released to the public as an agreement reached by the vessel captain and the company side.

The Quanzhou government has since established a special medical squad to handle local residents who were exposed to the leaked chemical. A total of 69 residents have been received by the team, 11 of which were hospitalized for treatment. All patients were discharged by November 16.

The air quality in the surrounding areas returned to normal by November 5, and the waters were assessed as "moderately polluted" on November 6 and 7, and have returned to Level I and II at present.

China classifies water quality into six levels, ranging from level I, which is suitable for drinking after minimal treatment, to level VI for water that is severely contaminated.

Donggang Petrochemical Corporation has been suspended from doing business for rectification, and seven company employees including Huang and four operators on the vessel, have been arrested by the local police.

Global Times



</s>The company responsible for a chemical spill that left dozens ill in east China "deliberately concealed" the extent of the leak, which was 10 times worse than reported, authorities said.

The spill in Fujian province happened in the early hours of November 4 when a tube transferring the chemicals from a wharf to a tanker broke, spilling 69.1 tonnes of C9 aromatics into the sea.

Fujian Donggang Petrochemical Company, the firm responsible for the incident, had previously reported just 6.97 tonnes.

"From the start, Donggang Petrochemical deliberately concealed, maliciously colluded, and forged evidence," said a statement released by the local Quanzhou city government on Sunday.

According to local authorities, mid-level and higher-up employees were told to keep the real volume of the chemical spill secret at a meeting following the incident in order to "escape" the legal consequences.

Later, the company under-reported the spill and blamed the hose rupture on old and damaged parts.

The local government also accused the petrochemical firm of disorderly management and weak safety protocols.

So far, authorities have arrested seven people over the incident.

Three are employees of the Fujian Donggang Petrochemical Company, which operates the wharf, and four are crew members of the tanker involved in the leak.

Earlier this month, residents near the coast who had come into contact with the C9 reported dizziness, nausea, and breathing difficulties.

C9 is typically used to produce adhesives, printing ink and paint, and is toxic.

A total of 69 residents were hospitalised after the leak, though all are now in "good condition", the state-run China Daily reported Monday.

It is the latest alleged corporate cover-up to make waves in China.

In October, Chinese authorities slapped penalties totalling a whopping $1.3 billion on a pharmaceutical company that fabricated records for its rabies vaccines.

Though authorities said the suspect vaccines did not enter the market, the case provoked outrage from consumers fed up with recurring product-safety scandals, particularly in the drug sector.

In 2008, China was hit with one of its most explosive health scandals when 300,000 children fell ill and six were killed by milk powder laced with the chemical melamine to give the appearance of higher protein levels. Melamine is usually used to make plastic.
The chemical spill accident in Quangang District, Quanzhou, China on November 4 is found to be 10 times worse than initially reported. According to the government of Quanzhou, the actual leak of C9 aromatics was 69.1 tonnes instead of 6.97 tonnes understated by the Fujian Donggang Petrochemical Company. Several officials of Quangang District have been suspended from their posts and seven company employees have been arrested by the police in connection with the cover-up.