The Tianjin Intermediate People’s Court has sentenced 49 people involved in the massive blast at Tianjin Port on August 12 last year.
The blast led to the death of 173 people and resulted in the largest marine claim in history with damages estimated at more than $6bn.
Yu Xuewei, president of Tianjin Ruihai International Logistics Co, was sentenced to death with a two-year reprieve for storing hazardous chemicals at a warehouse in Tianjin port by illegal means, which the court said triggered the blast.
Another five senior officials at the company received life sentences while 25 officials at Tianjin’s transport authority, customs, safety supervision department have also been sent to jail for periods of up to seven years for negligence of duty and taking bribes.
The Tianjin blast was so enormous it was visible from space.
Seems to me taking bribes would have been a key factor in creating this situation, and should have carried the heaviest penalties. Accepting bribes is one of the clearest and most obvious forms of corruption – people exchanging their position of responsibility for money. How can ANY culture have any integrity or legitimacy if bribery is accepted behavior?