Police have detained two people who were believed to be responsible for the fatal blast that occurred last Friday at a chemical plant in Dangtu County, east China's Anhui Province, according to provincial work safety administration.

Chen Shuo, deputy director of the provincial work safety bureau, said in wee hours Tuesday that the detained were Wang Yong and Wang Zijun, president and general manager of the Anhui Dun'an Chemical Co., Ltd.

At around 3:09?PM on June 16, a workshop producing powder-type emulsified explosives at the chemical company exploded, killing 14 people, injuring 24 people and leaving another two missing.

Preliminary investigation found that since 2005, the company kept producing emulsified explosives beyond its designed capacity, Chen Shuo said.

(Xinhua News Agency June 21, 2006)