Giant Mushroom Cloud Appears Over Beijing [Video]

The China Daily is reporting that a giant mushroom cloud resembling an atomic explosion is being seen all over the capital city of Beijing on Sunday. The video of the cloud has already appeared all over YouTube (see below). There are multiple videos of the haze that have been filmed from skyscrapers and from the ground, some going back as far as June 14th.

The Chinese government, in reacting to the red and green haze, is warning residents that they should stay inside according to the French Press on the scene.

The Chinese government has denied that there has been any type of industrial accident that has led to the haze. This week, The Economic Observer noted that the police in Beijing have arrested two internet users who blogged that the haze was being caused by a massive chlorine leak at a chemical plant or a huge explosion at a nearby steel refinery.

The official government news agency, Xinhua, is saying that the haze and mushroom cloud is being made by residents on the outskirts of the city burning straw. They have also denied any type of industrial accidents.

Due to the sheer size of the Chinese population, which stands at more than 1.3 billion people, air pollution is becoming a major problem in the population centers of the country. The government is often accused of downplaying the problem to the media.

Just earlier this month the Chinese government issued a warning to the United states Embassy in Beijing to stop publishing daily pollution warnings as they are against international conventions and domestic Chinese law.

Watch a video of the stunning mushroom cloud over Beijing, China.