My Story, Explosion rocks Apple supplier’s factory

Production of the
iPad may have been at least temporarily affected by an explosion today at an as-yet-to-open factory in China.

The blast, which occurred at a plant belonging to Pegatron subsidiary Riteng in Shanghai, injured as many as 61 people, according to a Reuters report. The explosion didn't cause a fire, but 23 workers needed to be hospitalized. Machinery was also reportedly damaged.

"The factory has not started operations yet. Part of the facility is still under pre-operation inspection and part is running trial production," Pegatron Chief Financial Officer Charles Lin told Reuters.

Production of current and future generations of Apple's
tablet could be affected. The plant was expected to produce back panels for the iPad 2, according to China's Yi Cai Daily.

Operations at the plant can resume only after a city government investigation and subsequent approval.

This is the second plant explosion this year to impact an Apple supply chain. An explosion in May rocked a Foxconn factory that reportedly made iPads, killing at least two people and injuring 16.