The State Council has issued a notice regarding the “October 15” explosion incident in Yulin and will conduct a comprehensive inspection of enterprises that may be involved in chemical projects.

Release Date:

2019-10-22

Recently, the Office of the State Council Work Safety Committee issued a notice regarding the major explosion accident that occurred on October 15 at Guangxi Yulin Lankexin New Materials Technology Co., Ltd.

To the Work Safety Committees of all provinces, autonomous regions, municipalities directly under the central government, and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, as well as to relevant central enterprises:

At approximately 11:10 a.m. on October 15, 2019, an explosion occurred at Guangxi Lankexin New Materials Technology Co., Ltd., located in the Northern Industrial Concentration Zone of Lucuan County, Yulin City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region (hereinafter referred to as the “October 15” accident in Yulin, Guangxi), resulting in four fatalities and eight injuries. Preliminary investigations indicate that the company, a manufacturer of casting machinery, had illegally and unauthorizedly constructed a chemical project and proceeded with trial production without proper planning. During this trial phase, a 10-cubic-meter atmospheric-pressure reactor in its resin workshop—producing phenolic resin using phenol and polyformaldehyde as primary raw materials—suddenly exploded. The detailed cause of the accident is currently under further investigation.

In addition, on October 11, a poisoning and asphyxiation accident occurred at the wastewater treatment plant of Hengxiang Biochemical Co., Ltd. in Ankang City, Shaanxi Province, resulting in six fatalities; on October 15, Jinyao Chemical Products Co., Ltd. in Chaoyang City, Liaoning Province, experienced a hydrogen sulfide gas poisoning incident during emergency equipment repairs, claiming three lives. Since National Day, three major accidents involving hazardous chemicals have occurred in succession, once again underscoring the extremely grave and complex situation facing chemical and hazardous‑chemical safety nationwide this year. Despite the State Council’s Work Safety Commission Office continuously organizing chemical‑safety enforcement inspections, conducting both open and undercover investigations, and launching a special campaign to identify and eliminate risks associated with hazardous chemicals—particularly by repeatedly urging and reminding all regions and relevant enterprises to ensure safe production upon resuming operations after the holiday—such incidents have nonetheless taken place, with particularly serious consequences. In particular, the “10·15” accident in Yulin, Guangxi, has brought the following critical issues to light: First, the company involved in the accident exhibited a profound disregard for the rule of law, devising spurious pretexts to evade regulatory oversight. Without completing the required notification and filing procedures, it unilaterally initiated construction of a chemical production project and commenced trial operations, resulting in an accident due to inadequate safety measures and uncontrolled risks. Second, local safety‑regulation mechanisms contained significant gaps and blind spots: the offending enterprise was not located within a designated chemical industrial park, and according to its business registration records it did not qualify as a chemical‑industry entity; yet in practice it had illegally installed chemical processing units and used hazardous chemicals. Meanwhile, the relevant local authorities failed to conduct a comprehensive and thorough assessment of hazardous‑chemical safety risks, lacked clarity regarding jurisdictional responsibilities, and thus overlooked the company’s efforts to circumvent oversight and engage in unauthorized construction and production activities. Third, the local commitment to sound safety‑development principles remained weak and unimplemented; investment‑attraction policies were inadequately scrutinized. The phenolic resin production project of the at‑fault enterprise originated in Dongguan, Guangdong, but was relocated to Guangxi under mounting environmental‑protection pressures. This hasty acceptance by local authorities sowed latent safety hazards. In order to draw profound lessons from recent accidents, apply these lessons more broadly, close regulatory loopholes, strengthen the implementation of supervisory responsibilities, and enhance the identification and remediation of safety risks and hazards—thereby resolutely curbing the trend of frequent accidents—the following work requirements are hereby put forward:

I. Immediately organize a comprehensive risk assessment of enterprises that may be involved in chemical projects, and assign regulatory responsibilities to each entity on a case-by-case basis.

All regions are required to immediately organize a comprehensive and thorough baseline survey of all enterprises within their jurisdictions that may be involved in chemical projects. Focus on inspecting enterprises whose names include terms such as “Biology,” “New Materials,” or “Technology,” and verify whether their business scope encompasses chemical production. It is essential to verify whether actual production and business activities are consistent with the registered information and to ensure compliance with regulations regarding the construction of chemical facilities. Particular attention should be paid to illegal practices such as leasing premises or equipment for contract manufacturing, which are used to shift safety risks. Strengthen organizational leadership, intensify public awareness campaigns and reward‑based reporting mechanisms, and refine and improve relevant systems to enhance the effectiveness of identifying and cracking down on illegal and non‑compliant production activities. For enterprises found to be in violation, carefully assess their industry classification and associated risks, clearly assign and enforce regulatory responsibilities on a case‑by‑case basis, and eliminate regulatory blind spots. With respect to issues identified during inspections, any cases involving inconsistencies between chemical production activities and the scope of registration must be subject to lawful and regulatory penalties, with orders to implement immediate corrective measures to eliminate potential safety hazards. In serious cases or where significant safety risks are present, appropriate measures—including suspension of operations for rectification, revocation of licenses and permits, and closure—shall be taken in accordance with the law.

II. Diligently strengthen safety management for the resumption of production and work following the National Day holiday, as well as winter safety production efforts, to firmly prevent a resurgence of accidents.

Following the National Day holiday, many enterprises have resumed production and work. Coupled with the fact that the fourth quarter is traditionally one of the peak periods for accidents involving hazardous chemicals in the chemical industry, even a slight lapse in vigilance or relaxation of safety requirements can easily lead to incidents. All regions must maintain a high level of alertness and stringent oversight, intensify supervision and inspection, and urge enterprise leaders to meticulously develop resumption plans, establish robust command structures, strengthen assessment and training, and ensure accountability for safety. Each piece of equipment and safety facility must be inspected and verified item by item; comprehensive risk assessments should be conducted throughout the resumption process, and targeted emergency response plans formulated. The leadership on‑duty system must be strictly enforced, on‑site patrols intensified, and timely identification and resolution of issues ensured. Rushing schedules, aggressive output targets, and overloading of production are strictly prohibited to prevent a resurgence of accidents during this period. Early preparations must be made to ensure safe production in winter, guiding and urging enterprises to strengthen the identification and remediation of safety risks and hazards. In light of adverse winter conditions—low temperatures, rain, snow, and freezing—comprehensive “winter‑proofing” plans should be developed, major hazard sources rigorously controlled, and measures implemented to prevent freezing, condensation, slipping, fires, explosions, static electricity, and leaks. Enhanced routine inspections are required to ensure that all protective measures are fully in place and that safety is maintained.

III. Deepen comprehensive safety governance of hazardous chemicals and identify and address gaps to effectively manage risks.

All regions must further intensify comprehensive efforts to ensure the safety of hazardous chemicals. In accordance with the 40 tasks across 10 areas outlined in the plan, they should conduct a thorough assessment of their local progress; for any outstanding items, measures must be strengthened and implementation accelerated. Particular attention should be paid to source‑level access controls and risk identification, with heightened vigilance regarding the risks associated with the relocation of outdated production capacity. When attracting investment, safety must remain the top priority: conduct rigorous scientific assessments and make prudent selections, resolutely preventing projects that fail to meet safety standards from being approved. Furthermore, in line with the “Catalogue of Industries and Chemical Substances Involving Safety Risks” issued by the State Council’s Work Safety Committee, regions should carry out more in‑depth surveys of safety risks in all sectors—especially at the use stage—and dynamically update the “single map and single table” to gain a comprehensive understanding of the current risk landscape, thereby refining and improving targeted control measures. All relevant departments must be urged to strictly enforce the principle that “safety oversight is integral to managing an industry, business operations, and production and business activities,” continuously strengthening safety regulation across all stages—production, storage, use, trade, transportation, and waste disposal—of hazardous chemicals. Enterprises concerned should be encouraged to enhance their hazardous‑chemical safety management, diligently implement measures to prevent and mitigate major safety risks, effectively avert serious and extremely serious accidents, and safeguard the lives and property of the people as well as social stability.

Office of the State Council Work Safety Committee

October 18, 2019

Source: Ministry of Emergency Management

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