Parents of missing firefighters search for loved ones

Liu Huan, 52, from Hebei province, lost touch with his son, Liu Chuntao, 22, who was with a Tianjin fire department in Tianjin, Aug 15.[Photo by Wang Zhuangfei/China Daily]

Parents of firefighters missing since the Tianjin explosion arrived the blast site on Saturday morning, crying for whereabouts of their loved ones.

"I don't know where my son is. I've no clues. If he is alive, I want to see him. If he is dead, I need to see his body," said Liu Huan, whose 22-year-old son, Liu Chuntao, was in the first batch of firefighters sent to the scene.

Liu Chuntao worked for the fifth branch of the Tianjin Harbor fire department and the team has 25 firefighters, the senior Liu said.

The elder Liu, together with more several other fellow countrymen from Yuxian county, Hebei province, came to Tianjin to search for their children after learning the news from the media.

Other relatives held a list of the names of 11 missing firefighters, all from Yuxian County.

The explosion on Wednesday night has so far claimed 85 lives, including 21 firefighters, according information released at the press conference.

The announced figure on Saturday morning included those from the Tianjin Harbor fire department, spokesman Gong Jiansheng said. However, he said the government doesn't know the number missing people at the moment.