The massive explosion that took the lives of two workers in a Foxconn plant in China has now apparently taken the life of a third worker as well. AllThingsDigital reports that Foxconn has issued a statement saying that an unnamed third worker at the plant located in Chengdu, China has now died due to injuries sustained in the explosion that occurred on Friday. 15 other people were reported as being injured due to the blast, according to the Foxconn statement. Six of those workers have since left the hospital, however.
Foxconn"s statement also talks about the cause of the explosion, which was originally reported as being caused by a lighting strike. A task force comprised of government and law enforcement officials is still investigating the cause, but Foxconn now says, "...the task force has communicated initial findings that the accident was caused by an explosion of combustible dust in a duct." The company says it is cooperating with the government on its investigation and adds that it "is taking all necessary actions to ensure the safety of employees at this and all other production facilities." In the meantime, operations at the Chengdu plant as well as plants that handle similar functions are now shut down while the investigation continues.
While not mentioned in the press release, the plant reportedly builds part of the iPad 2 tablet for Apple. This weekend an analyst has predicted that Apple could take a large revenue loss due to the Foxconn accident.