An explosion at a fireworks factory in East China's Fujian Province yesterday killed three people and injured at least eight others.

The tragedy comes soon after a fatal blast in North China's Hebei Province, which claimed 29 lives.

The Fujian explosion took place at the Jingxi Fireworks Factory, which is 2 kilometres away from Jingxi Town in Minhou County, from which 10 of those injured have been hospitalized at the county hospital, according to a source.

Several heavily injured people have been sent to hospitals in Fuzhou, the capital of the province, the source said.

The source said the exact number of injured people in the hospital was unclear, as the total number of people working in the factory at the time of the accident has yet to be confirmed.

"There are still injured people being sent here and we have not got a chance to count the number of them," she said in an telephone interview.

Meanwhile, the fireworks factory in Hebei Province, is at risk of suffering from another explosion.

Police have discovered large piles of materials that are prone to ignite and explode while they were cleaning up the ruined fireworks factory in Xinji, according to a Xinhua News Agency report.

The materials, including sulphur, are kept in the factory's raw material storeroom and police warned that if the storeroom exploded, the explosion can be more powerful than the previous one.

Of the 29 people killed by the blast, 15 has been identified by their families or relatives and have been cremated.

All fireworks factories in Hebei Province have been ordered to halt production and remain shut until they pass safety inspections.

The president of the Xinji First Hospital was removed from his post because he required the injured sent from the factory to pay for treatment, the China News Service reported.

Previously, the city government worked on the principle that all those injured by the blast should receive free treatment. Any money paid to the hospital has now been returned to the victims, the report said.

In addition, the hospital has distributed new daily-use materials, such as toothbrushes and slippers, to the injured people in the hospital, according to the report.

(HK Edition 08/01/2003 page2)