-Caveat Lector- Get the daily news updates, strange happenings etc. at http://leviathan.weblogs.com Better than Drudge, more up to date than Rumour Mills, more interesting than C Orlin Grabbe, more Libertarian than Al Martin, more Conservative than David Icke. http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/asia-pacific/newsid_1224000/1224103.stm Friday, 16 March, 2001, 13:25 GMT China blasts flatten apartments Scores of people are feared dead after a series of dawn explosions at factory workers' apartment blocks in north China. The Hong Kong-based Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy said up to 200 people had died following the blasts in Shijiazhuang city, Hebei province. It suggested the explosions were probably caused by bombs, adding that many workers had been laid off. "They are obviously criminal explosions and the death toll could reach 200," it added. Shijiazhuang official The most serious of the four blasts completely destroyed a five-storey residential block at the No. 3 Cotton Mill. State media reports confirmed 18 people had died. But the Hong Kong centre said there were 170 people in the building and that only 28 people had been rescued after 12 hours. A second explosion brought down part of the residential block at No. 1 Cotton Mill, believed to house 15 families. Witnesses said residents clambered out of their windows and climbed down ladders brought by police. Another blast rocked a two-storey workers' residence near the No. 7 Cotton Mill. Reports said there had been a fourth explosion in the city, but it was not clear where it was. The blasts happened at around 0500 local time on Friday (2100 GMT on Thursday). Residents said there were rumours that laid-off workers were responsible. Beijing is in the middle of restructuring its industry and in recent years many old state-owned enterprises have laid off their workforce. But correspondents said the No. 3 Cotton Mill was profitable and there was no firm evidence the blast was caused by a bomb. Rescue workers are still digging frantically through the rubble in search of survivors. "It was really loud. Many people thought it was an earthquake," said one resident near the No. 3 mill. "The exact number of casualties has not come out yet. They are still digging through the remains of the building," a factory official said. Police have sealed off streets near the blast sites. Shijiazhuang, which has a population of 1.3 million, is a centre of China's cotton textile industry. Last year Shijiazhuang executed a man who set off several bombs at public places, including crowded buses and shopping malls. State media said he had been trying to extort money. The latest explosions come less than a fortnight after a blast at a school in southern Jiangxi province killed nearly 40 children. The government blamed the incident on a lone madman with a bomb. But families of the dead say their children were being forced to make fireworks and the blast was caused by illegally stored explosives. <A HREF="http://www.ctrl.org/">www.ctrl.org</A> DECLARATION & DISCLAIMER ========== CTRL is a discussion & informational exchange list. Proselytizing propagandic screeds are unwelcomed. Substance—not soap-boxing—please! These are sordid matters and 'conspiracy theory'—with its many half-truths, mis- directions and outright frauds—is used politically by different groups with major and minor effects spread throughout the spectrum of time and thought. That being said, CTRLgives no endorsement to the validity of posts, and always suggests to readers; be wary of what you read. CTRL gives no credence to Holocaust denial and nazi's need not apply. Let us please be civil and as always, Caveat Lector. ======================================================================== Archives Available at: http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html <A HREF="http://peach.ease.lsoft.com/archives/ctrl.html">Archives of [EMAIL PROTECTED]</A> http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/ <A HREF="http:[EMAIL PROTECTED]/">ctrl</A> ======================================================================== To subscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SUBSCRIBE CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] To UNsubscribe to Conspiracy Theory Research List[CTRL] send email: SIGNOFF CTRL [to:] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Om
