BBC- NEWS

WORLD –EUROPE

SPANISH CHEMICAL PLANT EXPLOSION KILLS MAN 3KM AWAY

Read the following article about the plant explosion which took place in Tarragona
last January. Underline all the verbs in the past simple tense.

15th January 2020

A large metal plate launched by an explosion at a chemical plant in Spain’s

autonomous Catalonia region killed a man 3 km (two miles) away.

The man, named only as Sergio, was in his apartment when the one tonne object
struck, causing part of the building to collapse, officials have confirmed.

A factory employee was also killed in Tuesday’s blast. Another worker died from
injuries on Wednesday.

The explosion occurred at about 18.40 local time (17.40) in La Canonja.

Authorities said it was probably caused by a chemical accident, but that no toxic
substances were released.

People were, however, initially urged to stay indoors when the explosion at the site
just south of Tarragona set off a huge fire.

Residents of the Plaça Garcia Lorca housing estate in nearby Torreforta, where the
man was killed, described seeing a ball of fire stream across the sky at the time of the
incident.

Firefighters later confirmed that this was a metal plate from the factory site, which
they said weighed about a tonne.

Local resident Antonia Mora told Spanish newspaper El Pais: “It was like a bomb”.

Witnesses described seeing a large object hit the building, causing damage to the
exterior.
Dozens of firefighters worked through the night and into Wednesday to tackle the
blaze at the Industrias Químicas de Óxido de Etileno plant. Water was sprayed over
tanks containing chemicals to keep them cool. The factory produces chemicals such as
ethylene oxide, which can be used to make antifreeze, pesticides and to sterilize
hospital equipment, and propylene oxide, which is used to make plastics. Both are
extremely flammable.

Rescue teams with search dogs found the body of the second victim, a senior staff
member at the factory, in the early hours of Wednesday. The search had been called
off overnight due to poor visibility and dangerous conditions.

Eight people were injured in the explosion, and one of them died on Wednesday.

Late on Tuesday, Catalan leader Quim Torra told reporters: “Now we can send a
message of calm and confidence to people. There is no toxicity and therefore people
can carry on with their lives as normal.”

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez later offered support to Catalan authorities in
dealing with the accident.

Roads and public transport systems in the area that were closed as a precaution were
reopened on Wednesday.
Reading Comprehension

After reading this article try to answer the following questions.

1-What is this article about?

2-What happened?

3-Where?

4-In which type of industry?

5-When?

6-How many people died?

7-What do you think about industries in general?

Do you think that they are safe? Why?