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Families say Foxconn not cooperating

China.org.cn, May 23, 2011

The death toll rose to three Sunday from the Friday explosion at a Foxconn factory in Chengdu, Sichuan Province as authorities announced an investigation was still under way and provided no information on the victims.

Doctors and nurses receive workers injured in an explosion Friday night at the Foxconn factory in Chengdu where iPad 2s are assembled. Two employees died and 16 were injured.

Families of workers in Foxconn factories have been asking the company for a list of dead and injured but their demand was turned down, according to Jian Guangzhou, a journalist with the Oriental Morning Post who was among the first to report the explosion.

Xinhua journalist Yuan Jian confirmed that his camera was taken away by three men wearing traffic police uniforms who also smashed his video recorder.

A professor of public policy at Renmin University of China in Beijing Mao Shoulong said, "Authorities should first publish available information, such as casualties, to avoid unnecessary panic. Families of the workers have the right to know what is going on. The government also must clear off similar safety hazards with the enterprises to avoid further damage."

While the cause of the blast is still under investigation, local media have suggested that airborne dust, including magnesium may have ignited inside a polishing workshop.Police who were called to the scene after the explosion also said initially it seemed to have been caused by materials within the factory. According to the China Central Television, their preliminary investigation has ruled out sabotage.

The debut of Apple's iPad 2 tablet computer in China has generated a frenzy among Apple fans who braved long lines to snap up the popular device. In the first quarter of this year, revenue from China alone accounted for nearly 10 percent of Apple's total global revenue.

The blast in Chengdu will definitely have an impact on Apple's third quarter performance.