An explosion in a plant in Shanghai, China owned by Pegatron Corp has reportedly injured 61 workers over the weekend. Reuters reports that the explosion at the facility, owned by Pegatron subsidiary Riteng Computer Accessory Co, caused 23 of the plant"s workers to be hospitalized. While not confirmed by Pegatron, the plant was reportedly set up, at least in part, to make the back panel for Apple"s iPad 2 tablet.
The plant itself was not yet fully operational when the explosion occurred. There"s no word yet on what might have caused the incident. None of the worker"s injuries are expected to be life threatening, according to the report. An Apple spokesperson is quoted as saying, "Our hearts go out to the people who were hurt in Songjiang. We are working closely with Pegatron to understand the cause of this accident."
This is just the latest incident involving tech-based manufacturing facilities in China to cause injuries to its workers. In May, an explosion at a Foxconn plant located in Chengdu, China killed three of the plant"s workers and also injured 15 others. The plant was reportedly making parts for the iPad 2 and it went back into operation in early June; Foxconn also had a number of its workers committing suicide at its plants in 2010.