China tightens fireworks safety oversight ahead of peak season

China is tightening safety oversight across the fireworks and firecrackers industry, targeting weak corporate safety responsibility, illegal production and sales, online transactions and gaps in local supervision as the sector enters its peak production season, the Ministry of Emergency Management said Friday.

Zhang Xinglin, a work safety inspection official with the ministry, told a news conference that although the country's overall safety situation in the sector has remained generally stable in recent years, several major accidents this year exposed failures by enterprises to fulfill their primary safety responsibilities and shortcomings in departmental and local oversight.

The State Council General Office recently issued guidelines outlining 20 measures to strengthen safety oversight throughout the fireworks industry, covering production, storage, sales, transportation and use.

The guidelines call on manufacturers to improve mechanization, automation and digital management, while enterprises that fail to meet statutory safety requirements must be shut down in accordance with the law.

Local authorities are also required to better align the distribution of wholesalers and retail outlets with local restrictions on fireworks use and clearly define the areas in which wholesalers are permitted to deliver products.

New risks arising from online sales and offline delivery will face tighter controls. Internet platforms must strengthen oversight, individuals will be prohibited from posting online sales information for fireworks, and authorities will be required to investigate illegal transactions throughout the supply chain and trace their origins.

The guidelines also prohibit the production and sale of products that exceed mandatory national standards for explosive content or specifications, and call for the faster phaseout of consumer fireworks that pose high safety risks.

Zhang said responsibility will extend beyond legal representatives to actual controllers and people in charge under the principle that "those who invest, benefit and control must bear responsibility."

For serious violations, including excessive staffing or explosive loads, production beyond licensed scopes and unauthorized changes to warehouses or workshops, authorities will strengthen coordination between administrative enforcement and criminal justice and transfer suspected criminal cases to judicial authorities.

The tougher measures follow a series of deadly accidents this year.

On Feb 18, an explosion at a fireworks retail store in Yicheng, Hubei province, killed 12 people. An investigation released Oct 9 found that the accident was triggered when a customer illegally tested an oversized firework outside the store, igniting large quantities of fireworks that had been improperly stored and displayed.

Investigators also found failures in the store's safety management, licensing and product quality oversight, as well as shortcomings in local government supervision. The store had displayed fireworks outside its premises, stored more than its approved capacity and sold products that exceeded national standards, according to the investigation.

On May 4, a major explosion at a fireworks company in Liuyang, Hunan province, killed 37 people, left one missing and injured 51 others, according to figures released as of noon on May 8. The State Council established an investigation team, while Hunan launched a provincewide safety inspection of the fireworks industry.

Zhang said authorities face unusually heavy pressure during this year's peak season, as illegal production and sales have rebounded in some areas amid changes in market supply and demand.

The ministry will continue a nationwide campaign against illegal activities, intensify inspections of production, sales, storage, transportation and product quality, and issue targeted risk alerts through the Lantern Festival next year.

Authorities will also increase unannounced inspections in key regions and during critical periods, use safety-risk monitoring systems for online checks, and track identified hazards until corrective measures are completed and accountability is established.