The death toll from an explosion at a chemical plant in China has risen to nine, with one person injured and another still missing, state media reported Wednesday.
The blast took place on Monday morning at an area in a factory used to produce hydrogen peroxide in Liaocheng, a city in China’s eastern Shandong province, according to the official Xinhua news service.
While initial reports stated that five people had perished in the incident, four more bodies were later discovered at the site, Xinhua said.
Rescue efforts were ongoing, and the cause of the explosion was being investigated.
Xinhua reported that the one injured person had been rushed to the hospital and that a fire caused by the blast had been extinguished.
A missing individual had not yet been located, it reported.
The plant is operated by Luxi Chemical Group, part of Chinese state-owned conglomerate Sinochem.
