China News Agency, Berlin, July 27 (Reporter Peng Dawei) A serious explosion occurred on the 27th in a chemical park in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.

As of 21:00 that night, two victims had been found at the scene of the accident.

The accident has caused 31 injuries so far, and five others are still missing.

The specific cause of the accident has yet to be investigated after the risk has been completely eliminated at the scene.

  Leverkusen is a major town in the German chemical industry.

The Chempark where the accident occurred on the same day covers an area of ​​480 hectares. It used to be the factory of the pharmaceutical giant Bayer and later changed to a chemical park.

As of 2020, there are about 200 companies stationed here, with a total number of more than 31,500 employees, making it one of the largest chemical parks in Europe.

  Currenta, the operator of Leverkusen Chempark, announced on the same day that the explosion occurred at about 9:40 in the morning and was caused by a fire in a storage tank in the park.

Fire trucks were dispatched to fight the fire and the air quality at the scene was monitored.

  After the accident, officials issued warnings to people in the area by sounding alarms and pushing warning APP messages, and asked residents in the surrounding areas to stay indoors and close doors and windows.

  The specific cause of the explosion is still unclear.

The local police said that fire experts have intervened in the investigation to clarify the cause of the accident.

  North Rhine-Westphalia Governor Raschelt expressed condolences to the families and colleagues of the dead, injured and missing in the accident that day.

Leverkusen Mayor Richilat said that this is a "sorrowful day" for Leverkusen.

  North Rhine-Westphalia is a concentrated area of ​​Chinese and overseas Chinese in Germany. The Chinese Consulate General in Düsseldorf also issued a notice on the same day to remind compatriots in the consular district to pay attention to their own safety, pay close attention to notices about the place of residence, and try to avoid going to the surrounding areas of the explosion.

In case of emergency, you should immediately call the German police number 110 or emergency number 112, and if necessary, you can call the consular protection number of the consulate.

(Finish)