A suspected gas explosion in China's Yanjiao damaged multiple buildings and vehicles on Wednesday morning, media reports claimed. State media Global Times reported that the explosion occurred at a restaurant on the ground floor of an old residential complex in northern China's Hebei province. While the number of casualties was unclear, injured persons have been rushed to hospital, it reported.
Videos from the scene circulating online show a huge plume of blue smoke, several damaged sedans, and debris scattered all over the ground. Local authorities have sent an investigation team to the scene and are currently conducting rescue work, reports said.
“An explosion occurred at the ground floor restaurant in an old residential area,” state broadcaster CCTV reported, adding it was a "suspected gas explosion".
The blast took place around 7:55am (local time), CCTV said, in a residential area in the village of Xiaozhanggezhuang, Yanjiao, in Sanhe City, less than 50 kilometres east of the capital Beijing.
A video on social media showed what appeared to be a building that had completely collapsed and several destroyed cars.
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An underground coal bunker owned by a firm in Zhongyang County, Shanxi province collapsed right before midnight on Monday, killing five people with two missing, CCTV said on Tuesday.
In 2023, China had a string of deadly coal mine accidents, forcing the country's mine safety administration to revamp an existing law that an official said had "prominent problems".
