25 glue poisonings diagnosed as occupational disease

Guangzhou (CNS) -- So far, the capital city of south China's Guangdong Province has recorded 38 cases of dichloroethane poisoning, 25 of which have been confirmed as occupation-related. Four of the victims have died, a city official said on Thursday.

The city safety supervision authority pledged to track down the manufacturing source and the sellers of the inferior glue and bring them to justice. Twenty-one suspects were investigated; seven are now in criminal detention.

The victims were all working in their family businesses, and 36 of the 38 were operating without a license, a fact that may have compelled them to deal with illegal glue producers.

The first poisoning was detected on September 28, 2011 and the last case came to the attention of authorities on January 30.

Further diagnosis, industrial injury verification and compensation evaluations are underway.