BFF-21 Two children die in Vietnam explosion

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ZCZC

BFF-21

VIETNAM-EXPLOSION

Two children die in Vietnam explosion

BAC NINH, Vietnam, Jan 3, 2018 (BSS/AFP) – A baby and a five-year-old girl
were killed in an explosion east of Vietnam’s capital Hanoi early Wednesday
that destroyed several houses and wounded at least six other people.

Authorities are investigating the cause of the blast in Bac Ninh
province’s Yen Phong district, which occurred at 4:30 am demolishing
buildings and sending debris flying through the air.

The explosion completely razed five homes and shattered the windows of
surrounding buildings, according to an AFP reporter at the scene.

A one-year-old boy and a girl were killed, according to a report from the
provincial health department seen by AFP, while six others were taken to
hospital with injuries.

“The blast seemed to be in an area where there are many families involved
in collecting scrap,” a local official told AFP, requesting anonymity.

Salvage of metal from the tonnes of Vietnam War-era bombs that still
blanket the country often ends in tragedy.

In August six people were killed, including three children, when a war-era
bomb exploded in Kanh Hoa province. Reports at the time suggested it
detonated as scrap workers cut it open.

Since the end of the Vietnam War in 1975, more than 42,000 people have
been killed and over 62,100 injured by unexploded ordnance dropped by US
aircraft, according government figures.

BSS/AFP/MSY/1149 hrs