Taiwan gas blast city wants pipelines moved

KAOHSIUNG, Aug 2 (AFP): Residents of a Taiwanese neighbourhood rocked by deadly gas explosions Saturday accused authorities of not acting quickly enough and called for the relocation of industrial pipelines running underneath the island's densely populated second city.
The blasts sparked massive fires which tore through Kaohsiung's Cianjhen district late Thursday, killing at least 27 and leaving a yawning trench running for hundreds of metres down a series of major thoroughfares.
The blasts were so powerful cars were flipped over while a moped landed on the roof of a five-storey building. Nearly 300 people suffered injuries, including serious burns, during the explosions and subsequent inferno.