China port city cleans up pollution belt after fire

• Source: Xinhua
• [08:14 July 18 2010]
• Comments

A dark brown belt of crude oil and other pollution is seen in seawaters off Dalian's Xingang Harbor, July 17, 2010. Photo:Xinhua

Maritime workers in Dalian, a coastal city in northeast China's Liaoning Province, are still cleaning up a pollution belt at sea after fire was put out at an oil pipeline.

A dark brown belt of crude oil and other pollution stretches at least 50 square kilometers in seawaters off Dalian's Xingang Harbor.

About 20 vessels were cleaning the pollution Saturday, including four patrol boats from the provincial maritime bureau.

Large quantity of oil spill dispersant and absorption felt have been shipped in from Tianjin and the eastern Shandong Province, maritime officials said.

Fire engulfed the harbor Friday evening, after a blast hit an oil pipeline and triggered an adjacent pipeline to explode. Flames raged for 15 hours before they were extinguished Saturday morning. No casualties were caused.

"I heard a bang and felt as if someone had pushed me hard," said Chen Zhigang, an officer with Dalian border police who witnessed the accident. "For a moment I thought there was an earthquake."

The accident aroused the attention of China's top leadership, prompting instructions from President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao. Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang rushed to the fire site Friday night to direct the rescue work.