China: liquid ammonia leak kills 15, injures 26

A leak of chemical liquid ammonia from a cold storage unit in Shanghai killed 15 people and injured 26 more on Saturday, according to Xinhua, China's state-run news agency.

The incident took place around 11.00 a.m. (local time) at a refrigeration unit owned by the seafood company Weng's Cold Storage Industrial in the northern district of Baoshan, Agence France-Presse reported.

Chinese officials are still investigating the incident, as its cause remains unclear. Six people are still in critical condition at a hospital.

China is the world's second largest economy. But the Asian nation's rapid rise to economic superpower has come at a price, as its industrial safety standards are dangerously lax – and even then its enforcement of those regulations is suspect.

As AFP points out, "more than 27,700 people were killed or went missing in workplace accidents in the first half of this year."

In June, about 120 people died and 77 more suffered injuries after a fire broke out in a chicken plant in northeastern Jilin province.