An explosion occurred on well No. 16 of a natural gas deposit (having an estimated capacity of 50 to 60 billion tons), while a drilling and exploration crew was working on a well at a depth of 400 m. A leak of consisting of a mixture of natural gas + hydrogen sulphide followed, erupting into a violent jet roughly thirty meters high.

More than 61,000 people living in communities located several km away were evacuated and sent to stay with friends and family or to one of the 15 sites set up by the authorities. At the site, 300 technicians were mobilised and the situation was brought under control two days following the accident: The leak had caught fire. The well in which the explosion occurred was plugged 5 days later with 480 m³ of sludge. More than 2,100 people (including rescue personnel, firemen, soldiers and police,…) combed through 80 km² of territory and removed numerous animal carcasses that had been poisoned by the toxic gases.

In addition, the rescue personnel feared a possible risk of soil pollution due to the rainy weather forecast. Twelve days after the accident, the accident resulted in 243 deaths and 396 people still hospitalised, including 27 in critical condition. More than 9,000 people had to undergo medical treatment after having inhaled hydrogen sulphide. According to the initial information available, the majority of the victims had by intoxicated through gas inhalation. Many of the victims were children and elderly people.

According to the information relayed by the Chinese national television and after having had reported technical difficulties, the explosion was the result of negligence on the part of the drilling crew: numerous procedural errors, notably including underestimating the quantity of gas contained in the deposit, drilling without sufficient preparation, and failure in managing the gas leak properly (omitting to set it ablaze). The industrial safety administration conducted an inquiry on behalf of the Chinese authorities.