The warehouse at the center of last week’s blast in the Chinese city of Tianjin wasn’t the only one located too close to residential areas…One of the two warehouses—both controlled by state-owned chemical conglomerate Sinochem Group—is just over 500 meters away from a residential district that includes dozens of housing blocks, restaurants, motels and other businesses. A hospital and two schools are also located within a 1-kilometer radius of the warehouse…

The local government hasn’t said why Ruihai or Sinochem were able to obtain certificates to operate despite the violation of the proximity rules. Tianjin regulators weren’t available. The companies haven’t commented publicly, and didn’t respond to requests to comment.