China plant blast dead reach 69 as safety questioned

Victims gather outside the gate of a factory after an explosion in Kunshan, east China's Jiangsu province on August 2, 2014. - AFP

Shanghai (AFP) - The death toll from an explosion at a Taiwan-invested car parts factory in China reached 69 by Sunday, state media said, as a labour rights group cast doubt on its safety measures.

The blast on Saturday in a wheel hub polishing workshop at the Zhongrong Metal Products Co. in Kunshan, near Shanghai, also left nearly 200 injured, state television said, many with severe burns.