Late on the night of August 12, a series of ferocious explosions tore through an industrial area where toxic chemicals and gas were stored, sending massive fireballs into the sky above the port city of Tianjin, China. The blasts killed at least 50 people and injured more than 700, Chinese state media reported. Nearby residents woke to find a devastated industrial landscape of incinerated cars, toppled shipping containers, burned-out buildings, and broken windows for miles around. The exact cause of the disaster is still being investigated. See also: