The Vice Mayor of Tianjin, who has been absent for a long time, has something to tell you!

Editor's Note:
Since the major fire and explosion accident at the hazardous materials warehouse in Tianjin Binhai New Area on the evening of August 12, various concerns and worries have surrounded Tianjin, along with rumors and doubts.
Our newspaper continues to follow the Tianjin Port accident. How many major categories of hazardous materials were at the explosion site? Has there been a preliminary estimate of the losses caused by this explosion? Has an investigation been launched into Ruihai International Logistics Co., Ltd., the company involved, and what is the progress? Will the Tianjin municipal government take any compensation measures for the affected residents?
Starting from the 16th, our newspaper contacted the Tianjin municipal government hoping to interview relevant responsible leaders about these issues. On the 17th, He Shushan, the vice mayor in charge of safety production in Tianjin, accepted an exclusive interview with our newspaper.

At around 11 a.m. on the 17th, over a hundred media outlets from around the world focused on the press conference hall at the Meihua Hotel in Tianjin Binhai New Area, where the seventh press conference on the "8·12" Ruihai Company hazardous materials warehouse major fire and explosion accident at Tianjin Port was held. Vice Mayor He Shushan, responsible for safety production, attended the press conference for the first time and introduced the latest progress on hazardous chemical site disposal. When expressing "deep condolences to the victims," reporters noticed that He's voice was somewhat choked and his eyes were teary. After the press conference, He Shushan, who had been working continuously at the front command post for four days and five nights, accepted an exclusive interview with our reporter, responding to various concerns about the Tianjin Port accident.

Rescue and Treatment: Identification of Victims Will Be Publicized Timely
The accident site news center released the latest progress on the rescue situation: as of 9 a.m. on the 17th, the number of victims in this accident was 114, with 54 identities confirmed and 70 missing. Regarding when the specific information of the victims will be released, He Shushan said that the accident rescue headquarters is gradually making public the identities of confirmed victims, including the firefighters confirmed to have died. "However, some victims' bodies are difficult to identify and require DNA testing, which takes time and process. We have organized all relevant departments to work overtime for the identification. Once the results are out, we will regularly publish detailed information about these victims," He said.
According to He Shushan, so far, the rescue team has found two survivors from the core area, who are currently in stable condition. Meanwhile, the number of injured being treated in hospitals has dropped to over 690.

On-site Disposal: The Quantity of Hazardous Chemicals Has Been Basically Cleared
The progress of hazardous chemical disposal on site has been a focus of public attention. As the vice mayor responsible for this work, He Shushan stated: "What kinds of chemicals and hazardous materials Ruihai Company stored, how many types and quantities, after these days of work, we have basically figured it out. Although there are certainly some discrepancies with the actual situation, over 90% is accurate."
Regarding the most concerned cyanide quantity and disposal situation, He Shushan revealed that the amount of cyanide has basically been identified, and the cyanide scattered around the outer core area has been properly handled. The cyanide in the core area has been sealed with soil or sand and stones.
He Shushan said that the follow-up on-site disposal work remains very arduous. He explained that the hazardous materials warehouse involved was a transit warehouse storing many types of hazardous materials, with severe damage; meanwhile, the proper disposal methods for some substances produced by the explosion differ. He said that accurately determining the types and quantities of hazardous materials as much as possible and carrying out scientific and effective disposal based on this information remains the key and difficulty of the on-site disposal.
According to He Shushan, after the accident, the Tianjin Municipal Party Committee and government immediately established the accident rescue headquarters, setting up working groups such as accident disposal, injured treatment, support and stability maintenance for the public, and accident cause investigation, quickly carrying out rescue and disposal work.

      Accident Investigation: Punish Responsible Persons According to Law and Regulations
As information about the accident is gradually disclosed, investigations into the cause of the accident and whether the involved company violated laws have become a focus of public attention. He Shushan revealed to reporters that investigations into the involved company and related personnel have already started. "The State Council investigation team has been established and will investigate the cause of the entire accident. I believe the investigation team can find out the cause of the whole matter. Once violations or illegal acts are found, they will be resolutely punished according to law and regulations, providing an explanation to the victims, the deceased, and the public, and more importantly, to the people of Tianjin," He said.
Regarding the possible improper measures taken by the Tianjin Port Public Security Bureau Fire Brigade, which first entered the fire scene and may have lacked professionalism in dealing with complex disasters, He Shushan stated that after the accident, the Tianjin Port Public Security Bureau Fire Brigade responded immediately and arrived first, suffering the greatest losses, with 23 confirmed dead and 56 missing. For these officers, the fire was an order, and extinguishing it immediately was their duty. Since most of the officers involved died and there is no video footage, it is currently impossible to know the rescue situation at that time, and it is inappropriate to speculate simply whether improper measures were taken.
Regarding the losses caused by the incident, He Shushan explained that search and rescue and on-site disposal work are still ongoing. The loss assessment of the explosion needs to wait until the site is cleared, which has not yet begun. The accident investigation team will accurately investigate and evaluate the direct and indirect losses and officially release the results.

Pollution Prevention and Control: Characteristic Pollutants Are Controllable, Sea Discharge Outlets Closed
The pollution situation of this accident is a focus of local public concern. People are not only particularly concerned about the current pollution but also worried about potential long-term ecological risks to water bodies, air, and other environments.
In an interview, He Shushan said that after the accident, Tianjin, under the guidance of the national Ministry of Environmental Protection, promptly conducted environmental monitoring. For air quality monitoring, 17 environmental air monitoring points were set up with increased monitoring frequency. Results showed that conventional pollutants outside the isolation zone of the accident area were comparable to the citywide average, and characteristic pollutants were within controllable ranges, posing no obvious harm to humans. For water, wastewater, and seawater monitoring, results showed that cyanide and characteristic organic pollutants were not detected in surface waters near the accident area, including the Haihe River section and Yongdingxin River tidal gate, as well as in nearshore sea areas. After the accident, all three sea discharge outlets were closed. Environmental quality is basically guaranteed.

Livelihood Concerns: Formulate Housing Repair Plans and Provide Temporary Resettlement Subsidies
In this accident, preliminary statistics show that the disaster area involves 17,000 households, 1,700 industrial enterprises, and 675 merchants. Residents are especially concerned about the damage to their houses and property and hope the government can provide assistance and solutions. He Shushan stated: "This major fire and explosion accident caused significant casualties and property losses. Like everyone else, I have been deeply saddened these past few days." He said that Tianjin City is currently rushing to develop housing repair plans and compensation policies. It has been confirmed that for families temporarily unable to return home due to housing damage, Binhai New Area has formulated and will quickly implement temporary resettlement subsidies, with subsidy standards higher than the regional average rent, to resolve the living issues of the affected people.
Regarding the online discussion about why the Vice Mayor in charge of safety production in Tianjin did not attend the previous press conference, He Shushan gave a direct response. He explained that at the time of the accident, explosives and highly toxic chemicals had already been transported to the customs supervision area, ready to be loaded onto a ship, when the explosion occurred. These hazardous materials are highly toxic and must be cleaned up promptly. Therefore, according to the command center's arrangement, he was fully responsible for handling these hazardous chemicals. "In the past few days, we have been working overnight to develop plans and take measures. The work has been intense and continuous because this matter is very complex and difficult. It can be said that by the evening of the 17th, the highly toxic chemicals scattered around the core area had basically all been collected and dealt with, allowing me to attend the press conference on the morning of the 17th," He Shushan said.
Regarding online voices questioning the delay in disaster information disclosure, He Shushan responded that the principles of news information release are timeliness and accuracy. Since the accident, seven consecutive press conferences have been held, sometimes two in one day, to meet external concerns. Because there were still open flames and explosion risks at the scene after the accident, searches were extremely difficult, and the DNA identification and comparison process was complex. Only after repeated verification could accurate information be confirmed, which may have caused external speculation. "I hereby promise that all accident-related information will be released at the first opportunity while ensuring accuracy."