The death toll from the blasts at a chemical warehouse in Tianjin has risen to 112.
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Automaker Toyota and heavy equipment manufacturer John Deere have halted their operations near China’s port of Tianjin, where huge explosions killed 114 people and injured 700.
“However, due to ongoing evacuation advisories, none of the three lines at Tianjin FAW Toyota Motor Co Ltd will be (in) operation from August 17 through 19”, Toyota said. A production line in Xiqing, about 44 miles away, will remain shut because it needs parts produced in Tianjin. Subaru said more than 100 imported cars suffered damage, Volkswagen also reported damaged vehicles without giving a specific number though photos taken at the scene showed numerous cars from the group scorched by the explosions. Fortunately, Toyota’s facilities were unused at the moment due to a week-long summer holiday and no one was injured.
The government is continuing search and rescue operations and cleaning up hundreds of tons of toxic cyanide at the site while closely monitoring the environment, according to a report by the official Xinhua news agency.
As Toyota’s largest production location in China, any sustained closure will affect its supply in the world’s largest auto market.
The main Tianjin factory, which produces several models including the Corolla and Vios sedan, has about 12,000 employees and manufactured 440,000 vehicles previous year.
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As a result, the explosion had no impact on production by Toyota on its three lines near the area hit hard by the explosion.
