Dangerous and chemical goods were stored in a warehouse when the Tianjin explosion occured. There were many explosions following the first explosion which occured around 1:30 on Wednesday. Shockwaves were felt several kilometres away.

The China Earthquake Networks Centre said the magnitude of the first explosion was the equivalent of detonating three tons of TNT, while the second was the equivalent of 21 tonnes of the explosive. Further blasts were subsequently triggered nearby. The chinese officials found that four firefighters were among the dead and that more than 400 people had been injured, at least 32 of them critically.

President Xi Jinping has urged efforts to rescue victims and contain the fire that was caused from the explosion. Industrial accidents are not uncommon in China following three decades of breakneck economic growth.All we can do is help the people of Tianjin recover from the shock that shook them from the outside and the inside.