Five dead after hydrogen blast rocks chemical plant in Japan

Explosion at Mitsubishi Materials complex reportedly caused by maintenance crew working on heat exchanger

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AT LEAST five people have been killed and 17 injured by an explosion at a chemical plant in Japan's Yokkaichi City, Sky News reports.

The blast, at the Mitsubishi Materials complex, was reportedly caused when hydrogen was inadvertently ignited by a maintenance crew. The crew was working on a heat exchanger, used in the production of silicon products, at the time of the accident.

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