Six people were confirmed dead after a gas pipeline leak Monday in north China's Hebei Province, Xinhua quoted local authorities as saying. The accident occurred at around 8:30 a.m. at the Shunda Iron and Steel Co., Ltd. in Neiqiu County, when six workers were carrying out maintenance inside a blast furnace, said Fang Zhuxue, a spokesman with the county government. "An initial investigation shows that the workers had not completely turned off the gas supply system before entering the furnace, and they had not checked the gas intensity inside the furnace first," Fang said. Local work safety authorities are further investigating the accident, he added.
