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The Vietnam News

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Vietnam bamboo factory blast kills 12, injures 37

HANOI - A dryer exploded at a bamboo products factory in southern Vietnam, killing 12 workers and injuring 37, a local official said on Sunday. The blast occurred on Saturday morning at the Taiwanese-owned Long Tre factory in Trang Bang district, 50 km (31 miles) northwest of the southern economic hub, Ho Chi Minh City, the Tay Ninh provincial official told Reuters.

"Bamboo poles were blown up and smashed into the workers and seven of them were killed at site," the official said, adding that by Sunday morning another five workers had died of their injuries in hospital. Twelve workers in critical condition were moved to Ho Chi Minh City for further treatment, he said. Police were investigating the explosion, which destroyed the drying section of the factory as well as part of a nearby warehouse, he said.

State media said police were holding the passports of two Taiwanese executives of the unlisted firm for investigation. The company, which makes bamboo products for export, could not be reached for comment on Sunday. Labour accidents are common in communist Vietnam due to unsafe working conditions and a lack of labour protection measures. There were 2,367 labour accidents occurred in the Southeast Asian country in 2002, up 5.8 percent over 2001, state media has reported. More than 400 people were killed, up 4.1 percent from the previous year.

Taiwan is one of Vietnam's three biggest foreign direct investors.

Reuters - January 12, 2003.