Factory blast bosses arrested

The impact of the blast at AZF's factory rocked nearby villages

TOULOUSE, France -- Several directors at a French factory where an explosion killed 30 people have been taken in for questioning by police.

The massive blast at the AZF petrochemicals factory near Toulouse, came days after the September 11 strikes on the U.S. and was initially feared to be the action of terrorists, but was later deemed to have been an accident. (Full Story)

The director of the fertiliser chemical plant, Serge Biechlin, was one of nine people detained on Thursday.

The previous day four others were questioned and placed under investigation, including the head of the warehouse where the blast occurred. No further details have been released.

Staff and union members had stood outside the police headquarters and cheered, but said investigators should chase the owners of AZF, TotalFinaElf, the world's fourth-largest oil company.

Other directors taken in included Biechlin's deputy Rene Maillot and a former safety chief, The Associated Press reported.

Although investigators said the blast was not a terror strike a report by experts last week suggested that safety at the AZF plant had been lax leading up to the September 21 explosion, the news agency added.

Thirty people died and about 2,500 others were injured in the blast while thousands of homes in nearby villages were destroyed.

The explosion took place in a hangar containing 300 tons of ammonium nitrate, a chemical produced at the plant that can be used in fertiliser or explosives.

AZF is the brand name under which Grande Paroisse, France's largest fertiliser manufacturer, sells its products. Grande Paroisse is owned by Atofina, the chemicals unit of TotalFinaElf.