Japan – Explosion At Chemical Factory Kills One, Injures 11

[TOKYO] At least one worker was killed and 11 others injured in an explosion and fire that broke out Friday at a chemical factory just a few kilometres from Mount Fuji in central Japan.

Residents living within 100m of the factory were ordered to evacuate as 17 fire engines and nearly 60 firefighters battled the blaze.

Plumes of thick black smoke billowed into the sky from the factory belonging to Arakawa Chemical Industries, which manufactures chemicals for the paper industry.

“A 64-year-old worker, who had earlier been missing, was found dead,” Takahiro Suzuki, a fire service official from Fuji City, told AFP.