Rabbits, pigeons and chicken sent to Tianjin to check extent of spread of poison

Authorities in China are making use of animals like rabbit, pigeons and chicken to test the extent of spread of poison and whether it is now safe for people to return because, a giant chemical explosion in Tianjin last week had killed 116 people.
This has been reported in nzherald.co.nz dated 23 August 2015.

The animals have been sent in cages into the danger zones because of fears of chemical contamination from the release of poisonous gases due to the explosion and, as per local media reports, the animals were still alive two hours after being placed at the site.
As revealed by the authorities, about 40 chemicals, including more than 100 tonnes of highly toxic sodium cyanide, were stored in the warehouse which was at the epicenter of the August 13 explosion. In the week since then, officials have tried to calm public fears of chemical dangers. There was a 3.2-Km evacuation of the area surrounding the epicenter and locals remain are still unwilling to return home.
Tianjin deputy mayor Wang Hongjiang has indicated that 200 tonnes of sodium cyanide had been collected as the lengthy clean-up operation continued. Moreover, contamination around the blast site was now under control and the density of air pollutants in the immediate area has also d9iminished.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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Explosion in Tianjin leaves at least 50 dead, more than 700 injured

The blasts, at a warehouse storing toxic chemicals in Tianjin, a city in north China, and has left at least 50 dead with another 700 injured. The explosion has also destroyed tower blocks and burned out thousands of cars.
This has been reported in bbc.com dated 13 August 2015.

The dead include twelve firefighters while 36 of their colleagues are still missing.
Tianjin is one of China's most important industrial centers, and one of the busiest ports in the world and President Xi Jinping has promised a thorough investigation into the events and agreed to make the disclosures public The explosions occurred in Tianjin's Binhai New Area which is a vast industrial zone and houses car factories, aircraft assembly lines and other manufacturing and research firms. There were a number of blasts and broken and buckled shipping containers lay all around the area.
The intensity of the blast was such that windows had blown out and office blocks were destroyed for a radius of 2-Km. The impact of the blasts was felt several kilometres away, and was detected by a US Geological Survey monitoring unit in Beijing 160-Km distant.
(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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Beijing inaugurates the dial-a-copter scheme

Beijing has inaugurated its dial-a-copter scheme. It is a trial helicopter hailing service and has been jointly launched by a Chinese general aviation operator and China`s biggest taxi hailing platform. It has reportedly proved to be a great hit over the weekend.
This has been reported in zeenews.india.com dated 18 May 2015.

It seems over 10,000 applicants had signed-up for the helicopter service using Didi Kuaidi`s platform, but only 100 managed to hail a ride. It was a three-day trial run from May 15 and, while many did sign up, it was not possible to accommodate all of them.
The itinerary of the trip was a 230-Km Beijing-Tianjin round trip in a Bell-429 helicopter. The fare was 3,500 yuan ($560) per person, and the round trip to suburban Yanxi Lake was billed at 1,999 yuan ($321).
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(Image courtesy wikimediacommons.org)

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