Explosion in iPad factory kills two, injures more
More pain for Foxconn workers
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Updated An explosion at the Chinese factory that manufactures Apple's iPad, among other devices, has reportedly killed two three* and injured 16, three seriously.
The explosion at the Foxconn plant near Chengdu in southwest China occured around 7pm local time, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. Foxconn told the WSJ that the "cause of the explosion is being investigated by local police." The local government, however, has ruled out foul play.
Raw video of the aftermath of the explosion, first published by the Chinese tech site M.I.C. Gadget, was quickly put up on YouTube:
Foxconn has been under scrutiny in recent years due to worker protests, suicides, poisonings, and allegations of worker abuse.
Apple's stock slipped on the news of the explosion, despite news earlier in the day that iPad 2 availablity was "significantly improved" over the level of constraints that Apple COO Tim Cook complained about when announcing his company's most-recent financial report.
Of course, it's obscene to look at the Foxconn explosion merely through the lens of how it affects Apple's profits – not when two workers are dead, and others are seriously injured. ®
Update 1
The China Financial Daily reports that the explosion at the Foxconn plane was caused by "super-light dust", presumably akin to that which causes grain silo and some coal mine explosions.
At about 19:20 Beijing Time, Chengdu Hi-tech Industrial Park West Foxconn Building A5 production building exploded, 2, 3, 4 layers are affected, the wall shattered. The explosion is caused by a super-light dust explosion. The building is the production lines for ipad2 series. When the explosion occurred, hundreds of people inside the building carried out the production operations, Foxconn now has entered the state of emergency rescue. Casualties of the accident is unknown.
It goes without saying that if the explosion were indeed caused by such a dust accumulation and ignition, the ventilation practices in the iPad 2 production line at the Foxconn plant near Chengdu are – at minimum – highly suspect.
* Update 2
Reuters reported on Sunday that Foxconn had confirmed a third death from the explosion. Foxconn also said that work had been suspended at the "polishing workshop" reportedly part of iPad 2 production at the Chengdu factory, and at workshops doing similar work.
COMMENTS
You are right... BUT....
Foxconn (and like) make stuff that's in almost everything us IT folk like or use.
I mean, what did you use to type that post? a ZX 81? Ok, that's ridiculous, admittedly but even for the sake of argument, if you did, how many Chinese made devices and components did the bits of your message traverse thru'? Your modem router for example, to start with?
I'm not saying I do not agree with what you say - I do believe everyone should be treated fairly.
But the fact is, sweatshop products are likely everywhere and more pervasive than anyone of us are probably aware of or would probably want to acknowledge.
*WAKE UP* You probably use them yourself.
Errm..
.. not to piss on your enthusiasm, but there are no facts available yet what caused it. I know from work in plastic manufacturing that it only takes a seal to pop and you have a flammable dust cloud - even when you maintain things well this can happen, and we're also talking about human operators who can make mistakes.
Until there is more detail it is not very grown up cooking up some conspiracy theories and start the beloved flaming or whoever is associated with it. Let's keep in mind that people died there, that's serious, even though you are fed a constant diet of TV shows and films where killing people is just entertainment..
iSweatshops
How many pious iOwners get a rush of endorphins every time they smugly boast to their iFriends how they never buy cheap clothes because doing so supports Indian sweatshops?
But get a bunch of Chinamen to work their bollocks off for a dismal pittance under brutal ganger-men the like of which became extinct in the UK when the last of the Irish navies finished digging the canals, and it's a completely different matter...
I've never seen a cheap clothes retailer who was exposed as selling sweatshop garments who didn't blatantly stick its fingers in its ears and move to reassure its customers with the standard-issue mantra of them taking every effort to ensure the safety and well being of those employed by their suppliers/partners etc etc.
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