A fire erupted on August 25, 2026, at the Amur Gas Chemical Complex in Russia's Amur region near the Chinese border, killing seven people and injuring 152 [1, 2]. The site is a joint venture between Russian petrochemical firm Sibur and China's Sinopec, designed to become a major polyethylene and polypropylene producer [3, 4, 1, 2]. Authorities reported six Chinese and one Russian worker among the fatalities [1, 2]. Nine Chinese workers remain missing, with search and rescue efforts continuing [1, 2].
The blaze started in an auxiliary technical or process area of the plant, which was still under construction and had not begun production, while the main pyrolysis unit and key installations were not damaged [5, 4, 2]. Emergency services extinguished the fire, though controlled burning of residual industrial gases was ongoing as of August 26 [5, 3, 4, 2].
Local authorities carried out medical evacuations and monitored air quality near the nearby town of Svobodny, finding no hazardous levels of pollution [2]. Of those injured, 152 received medical treatment, with 36 of them hospitalized [1, 2]. Earlier reports gave slightly lower numbers of casualties and hospitalized [5].
Company statements confirmed the confirmed deaths and said the fate of the missing workers remains unknown [5, 2]. Investigations into the fire's cause and possible industrial safety violations are underway [5, 4, 1, 2]. The complex is seen as a key project between Russia and China in the petrochemical sector [3, 4, 1, 2].
Search and rescue operations remain active as authorities work to locate the missing workers and determine full casualties from the fire.
