Victim of Tianjin chemical blast to sue Chinese government over lack of compensation

Sevenqi Na has received no state compensation because she rented her home - while landlords have received money

Aftermath of the Tianjin disaster, which killed 173 people and left almost 800 injured (AFP)

A Tianjin woman left injured and without a home after August’s deadly chemical disaster has become the first person in the city to sue for compensation.

Sevenqi Na, 29, a translator who lived just under a mile from the blast site, told The Independent she is seeking financial reparations for injury, loss of property and psychological trauma caused by the two massive late-night explosions at a chemical warehouse in the north-eastern Chinese port city.

“I don’t remember a lot of the night, because my mind has blocked it out,” she says. “I had to go to a psychiatrist for some months after it. What I do remember is running out of my building with just a sheet and no shoes on. The sky was bright orange and everything smelled like glass and blood mixed with hot air.

“Everyone’s windows had been blown out and we had to run across glass in our bare feet. I wasn’t able to walk properly for two weeks. Everyone was screaming, everyone was really traumatised.”

Ms Na is among thousands of people who lost their homes as a result of the blasts at the Ruihai International Logistics warehouse, which killed 173 people and left almost 800 injured. No official explanation has been provided as to what caused the blasts.

She says that while landlords of wrecked properties have received government compensation, those like her, who rented, have received nothing.

Sevenqi Na was injured at her home 1.5km from the blast

In September state-owned property developers began to buy damaged flats from landlords following a string of public protests. The landlords were also offered lump sum compensation payments and those whose properties were occupied received more – but nothing was offered to tenants. Today, Ms Na, who has been forced to move in with her boyfriend and his mother, went to court to argue for a share of the RMB 400,000 (£40,000) compensation paid to her landlord, who lived almost 100 miles away in Beijing.

“My landlord sold the apartment without telling me,” said Ms Na. “I was still recovering from my injuries and he told me I had 10 days to leave. When I asked him about the compensation, he told me it was in his bank account and there was nothing for me.

“I think some of money should go to people who actually suffered. We are the real victims. My landlord lives in Beijing, so I don’t know why he deserves all the money.”

While it not unusual for Chinese citizens to sue the government over local disputes, Ms Na says lawyers warned her against the idea due to the sensitivity of such a high-profile issue.

She also says she was ignored, then intimidated, by the authorities as she pursued answers. “When I went to government offices to ask what I should do, no one would see me.” The policemen outside said “they would arrest me if I didn’t leave”, she added.

Ms Na says no lawyer in Tianjin was willing to take her case. “When I mentioned the explosion they all said, ‘No, no, we cannot take this’. When I asked why, they said it was not their speciality. Every lawyer said this.

“So now I am representing myself in the court. I have presented the facts to show them I am a real victim with a right to some compensation.”

But with no compensation laws in China, no one has yet been held liable for the disaster and compensation is at the government’s discretion.

The court said today that there would be no outcome until the government has made further announcements. Ms Na believes this uncertainty will discourage other people from taking their own cases to court. “The government makes us feel hopeless and helpless,” she said.