The warehouses of the Explosive for Civil Use Company in Aba Prefecture, northern Sichuan, collapsed during the devastating earthquake. And a large amount of dynamite and detonators under the rubble may explode at any time. On Monday, technicians removed almost fifty tons of dynamite and are transferring it to Maoxian County.

On Monday, technicians removed almost fifty tons of dynamite and are transferring it to Maoxian County.

PLA dynamite experts and technicians from the Company carefully removed the dangerous electronic detonators and dynamite as sudden movement could cause an explosion. All mobile phones had to be switched off as an extra precaution.

Fifteen trucks were used for transportation. Landslides have affected around 20 kilometers of the road from Aba to Maoxian County. A thick quilt was placed on the bottom of every truck to reduce the impact of the bumpy road. The trucks kept a distance of at least 100 meters between each other so they wouldn't all be hit at the same time by stones falling from the mountains.

It is expected that these dangerous materials will arrive in Maoxian County Tuesday afternoon and stored in suitable warehouses. The dynamite and detonators buried under the collapsed warehouse in Aba will be destroyed in the next few days.

(CCTV May 27, 2008)