Fireworks explosion

FIVE people were confirmed dead and two others still missing following a fireworks explosion early yesterday in Liling, a county-level city under the administration of Zhuzhou in Central China’s Hunan Province.

The explosion occurred at around 4 a.m. in a hoggery suspected of illegally producing fireworks. The on-site rescue operation has concluded, and those involved in the illicit production have been taken into police custody, according to the local emergency management bureau.

Stone tablet

AN ancient stone tablet fragment from a temple for a deity dating back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) was recently discovered at a village in North China's Hebei Province.

The new archaeological findings are of significant value for the study of ancient maritime sacrificial culture in northern China.

Convective weather

CHINA'S meteorological authority yesterday renewed a blue alert for severe convective weather in vast stretches of the country.

Thunderstorms, gales and hail will sweep parts of Liaoning, Shanxi, Hebei, Beijing, Jiangsu, Hubei and Sichuan in the following two days, according to the National Meteorological Center.