Fire at Sinopec Shanghai Petchem Plant Kills One

This aerial photo taken on June 18, 2022 shows a large fire at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical plant in outlying Jinshan district of Shanghai. (AFP)
This aerial photo taken on June 18, 2022 shows a large fire at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical plant in outlying Jinshan district of Shanghai. (AFP)
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Fire at Sinopec Shanghai Petchem Plant Kills One

This aerial photo taken on June 18, 2022 shows a large fire at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical plant in outlying Jinshan district of Shanghai. (AFP)
This aerial photo taken on June 18, 2022 shows a large fire at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical plant in outlying Jinshan district of Shanghai. (AFP)

A fire broke out at a Sinopec Shanghai Petrochemical Co Ltd plant in Shanghai early on Saturday, killing one person, the company said.

Roaring fire was seen engulfing part of a sprawling factory, emitting columns of thick black smoke, in a video posted on Twitter by the state-backed Shanghai Daily.

The fire at one of China's biggest refining and petrochemicals plants started around 4 a.m. (2000 GMT on Friday) and had been brought under control by 9 a.m. but "was difficult to handle", state media Xinhua reported, citing fire officials.

It was expected to continue burning for some time.

The driver of a third-party transport vehicle died and a company employee suffered a minor injury, said a Sinopec representative.

He said the fire affected the ethylene glycol facility at the plant in Jinshan, a southwestern suburb of China's financial capital.

State-owned Sinopec said on its official Weibo account it was monitoring volatile organic compounds and impact to rainwater outlets, and no impact on the surrounding water environment had been found.

Sinopec Shanghai has processing capacity for 16 million tons of crude oil a year and 700,000 tons of ethylene, according to its website.

It is building a 3.5 billion yuan ($520 million) carbon fiber project as it seeks to diversify away from refining, and focus on resin and fibers.



Ukrainian Forces Knock out North Korean Self-Propelled Howitzer, Military Says 

A handout picture made available 09 February 2025 by the press service of the 24th Mechanized Brigade of Ukrainian Armed Forces, shows servicemen of the 24th Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo, preparing to fire 2S1 self-propelled 122mm howitzer towards Russian positions, near Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 07 February 2025 amid the Russian invasion. (EPA/Press service of the 24 Mechanized Brigade Handout) 
A handout picture made available 09 February 2025 by the press service of the 24th Mechanized Brigade of Ukrainian Armed Forces, shows servicemen of the 24th Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo, preparing to fire 2S1 self-propelled 122mm howitzer towards Russian positions, near Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 07 February 2025 amid the Russian invasion. (EPA/Press service of the 24 Mechanized Brigade Handout) 
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Ukrainian Forces Knock out North Korean Self-Propelled Howitzer, Military Says 

A handout picture made available 09 February 2025 by the press service of the 24th Mechanized Brigade of Ukrainian Armed Forces, shows servicemen of the 24th Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo, preparing to fire 2S1 self-propelled 122mm howitzer towards Russian positions, near Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 07 February 2025 amid the Russian invasion. (EPA/Press service of the 24 Mechanized Brigade Handout) 
A handout picture made available 09 February 2025 by the press service of the 24th Mechanized Brigade of Ukrainian Armed Forces, shows servicemen of the 24th Mechanized Brigade named after King Danylo, preparing to fire 2S1 self-propelled 122mm howitzer towards Russian positions, near Chasiv Yar in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, 07 February 2025 amid the Russian invasion. (EPA/Press service of the 24 Mechanized Brigade Handout) 

Ukrainian forces have struck and knocked out a North Korean self-propelled howitzer on the eastern front of the nearly three-year-old war with Russia, Ukraine's military said on Tuesday.

A statement by the Khortytsia, or East, group of forces said it was the first time since the start of the conflict that a North Korean М-1978 Koksan howitzer had been hit by a Ukrainian drone.

"In Luhansk region, fighters of the 412th separate regiment of Nemesis drones struck a very rare M-1978 North Korean self-propelled artillery vehicle with a gun caliber of 170 mm," the statement posted on Telegram said.

The post was accompanied by a video showing a military target being blown up, and said the Koksan had first been observed in the war in October 2024. Reuters could not independently confirm the report.

North Korea's military aid to Russia has included about 200 long-range artillery pieces and a significant amount of ammunition, South Korea's defense ministry told a parliament committee last week.

Luhansk region, mostly occupied by Russian forces, is one of four that Russia formally annexed in 2022, moves that Ukraine and its allies have not recognized.

Ukraine and Western military experts say up to 12,000 North Korean troops were deployed in southern Russia's Kursk region alongside Russian forces and have also reported military equipment from Pyongyang being used.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said last week that Russia could send up to 3,000 more North Korean troops to Kursk region, where Ukrainian forces hold a chunk of territory more than six months after launching a cross-border incursion.

North Korean security agents are monitoring and controlling their country's troops in Kursk, telling them that the South Korean military are flying the drones attacking them, according to an interview with two North Korean prisoners of war captured in Ukraine reported by South Korean newspaper Chosun Ilboon on Wednesday.