The appalling mushroom clouds that spiralled up in the air above a chemical plant in Jilin City in northeast China's Jilin Province on Sunday may remind some people of atomic bombs, although the consequences were incomparably less serious.

By press time, five persons had died and one was missing. Apart from human and material losses, thousands have been forced to evacuate and wait for the pollution to dissipate.

We express our sincere condolences to the families of the dead and the injured.

The death toll is less than that in most coal mine accidents. But different from other kinds of accidents, chemical plant explosions may lead to the leakage of toxic gas and materials, which pose serious health risks to local residents.

It is for this reason that the explosion should keep us on high alert over production safety at similar plants.

Local authorities said incorrect operation by workers led to the explosions. But the public deserves a clearer answer of what exactly happened, what responsibilities the corporate management would shoulder, and what they would do to improve safety standards.

While further investigation will uncover the truth of the accident, measures must be taken immediately across the country to strengthen safety in potentially dangerous sites. And that should be in no way translated into a short-lived campaign, but a longstanding commitment to safety production standards.

In Jilin's case, the fact that so many people - more than 10,000, according to media reports - were forced to evacuate poses another question: Why was the chemical plant located so close to major residential communities?

As well as poor planning, there are of course historical reasons. Many chemical and other pollution-producing factories used to be built in remote corners of urban districts. But as urban populations grow and cities expand, people have moved ever nearer to these dangerous sites.

Even before the explosions, this geographic proximity posed a threat to locals as the plants often emit harmful gases and substances, which pollute the air and water, and affect the health of human beings.

People have groaned for years about the foul air in some areas where chemical factories are located.

The explosions at the Jilin chemical plant make it more urgent to find a way to reduce the danger posed by such plants.

One achievable measure would be to conduct technological upgrading and improve management, to reduce emission of pollutants and enhance safety.

A more effective way is to move those factories to relatively remote places with lower populations and a better capacity to resolve pollution.

The Beijing-based Capital Iron and Steel Group has relocated most of its facilities to neighbouring Hebei Province to improve the local environment in the run-up to the 2008 Olympics.

The group's experience shows that relocation may be a more effective and instant cure, but it will incur colossal costs - 50 billion yuan (US$6.2 billion) for the group alone.

Many factors would have to be weighed up before a decision is made. The local government, the corporate leadership, employees and local people would all need to have a say in the decision-making process, no matter what solutions are tabled.

But a solution must be found as soon as possible to ensure a safer and healthier life for local people.

(China Daily November 15, 2005)