Oh gracious!!! At least 67 killed in scaffolding collapse in China

At least 67 people are dead after scaffolding collapsed at a building site in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangxi.

The work platform, which was attached to a cooling tower being built at a power plant in Fengcheng, gave way at about 7.30am local time on Thursday (11.30pm UK time).

The official Xinhua News Agency said at least 40 people had been killed, while an unknown number of others were still trapped in the debris.

TV footage from the scene showed iron pipes and wooden planks strewn across the floor of the massive concrete cooling tower.

China has seen a series of major industrial accidents in recent months which have been blamed on corruption, a disregard for safety and pressure to boost production as the Beijing economy has slowed.

Earlier this month, the head of a logistics company was given a suspended death sentence over a massive explosion at an illegal chemical warehouse in Tianjin which killed 173 people - most of them firefighters and police officers.

In June last year, 442 people were killed when a modified cruise ship capsized on the Yangtze River. The accident was blamed on poor decisions made by the captain and crew, with only 14 survivors.

In December, 81 people were killed when a mountain of soil and waste collapsed on buildings in the city of Shenzen.

China has vowed to improve safety at industrial facilities. President Xi Jinping said authorities will learn the lessons after the Tianjin explosions.

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