China chemical plant death toll reaches 78

Muscat: The death toll from an explosion in a chemical plant in east China's Jiangsu Province has risen to 78 as of Monday afternoon, authorities said.
Rescue workers discovered 14 more bodies after searching an area of 2 square kilometres surrounding the blast site, raising the total death toll to 78, Cao Lubao, mayor of Yancheng, said at a press conference Monday afternoon.
Among the dead, 56 people have been identified, according to Cao.
Of the 28 missing persons previously reported, 25 have been confirmed dead and another three have been found.
Cao said Saturday that the people reported as missing could possibly be among the victims whose identifications had yet been verified.
The explosion happened at about 2:48 p.m. Thursday following a fire that broke out in a plant owned by Jiangsu Tianjiayi Chemical Co. Ltd., in a chemical industrial park in Xiangshui County in Yancheng.
Meanwhile, a new emergency response team comprising 400 people was dispatched by China's Armed Police Force to assist with rescue efforts after a deadly chemical plant explosion in east China's Jiangsu Province.
The members on the team, who are specialised in chemical defence, engineering and transport, have come from the Armed Police Force troops stationed in Jiangsu, Anhui and Fujian provinces and brought with them plenty of equipment, such as chemicals reconnaissance and decontamination vehicles.