Tianjin's reaction to explosions revealed by big data

(WCT) After the Tianjin explosions, some Tianjin residents immediately packed up their belongings and moved to Beijing, with Baidu statistics showing heavy inflows to Beijing on Aug. 14 and 15, of which Tianjin residents made up a majority, followed by Langfang, reversing the previous situation in which Langfang took the lead, followed by Tianjin, DT Caijing reports.

Two explosions occurred at a hazardous chemicals warehouse at the port of Tianjin on Aug 12, killing at least 116 people and injuring hundreds of others. The cause of the explosions was not immediately known, but initial reports point to an industrial accident. Fires caused by the initial explosions continued to burn uncontrolled throughout the weekend, causing secondary explosions.

Big data has given clues as to how Tianjin residents reacted to the explosions.

After the situation stabilized, Tianjin residents slowed their outflows to Beijing, with Langfang taking back the lead in inflows to the capital, Baidu statistics showed.

For Tianjin residents' outflows, Beijing was their top priority, accounting for roughly 50% in the following three days after the explosions, compared with about 40% before the explosions, with other choices including Langfang, Huludao, Qingdao and Shanghai.

After the explosions, fewer Tianjin residents moved to Langfang, probably because Langfang is too close to Tianjin and Tianjin residents therefore do not feel it is safe enough.

According to Taobao statistics, from Aug 11-13, orders from Tianjin for filters surged 220% and those for water additives surged 150% from the same period a month earlier, far exceeding other automotive peripheral products.

After the explosions, the number of cars and people in Tianjin's commercial districts saw a stark reduction. From Aug 10-16, fewer Tianjin residents went out dining, with the city's takeout trading volume surging, while the nation's other cities showed a falling volume in the same period.

During the same period, shopping for drinking water and mineral water also surged, according to Taobao statistics.

Tianjin residents were also hunting for household air purifiers, ranking first among Taobao's hot-sale home appliance items from Aug. 14-16.

Before Aug. 12, few Tianjin residents wore respirators, or protective masks, but from Aug. 14-16, among the people searching for respirators in China, 55% were Tianjin residents, according to the statistics.

From Aug. 11-13, among internet searches for home appliance products in Tianjin, searches for respirators jumped 4,333% while those for masks jumped 543%, compared with the same period a month earlier. From Aug. 12-14, people aged between 25-29 conducted most searches for respirators, followed by people aged between 30-34.

Source: Want China Times