Two killed as blast rocks Chinese port city of Ningbo

NINGBO: A powerful explosion hit China’s major port city of Ningbo on Sunday, killing at least two people, injuring more than a dozen and wrecking buildings, authorities said.

Cars were twisted and mangled by the force of the blast, a plume of grey smoke rose in the sky and debris was scattered for dozens of metres. But there was no oficial word on its cause.

The Ningbo government said on a social media account that the blast occurred in a “vacant lot.”

Local authorities said two people died, two were seriously injured and an unidentiied number were being treated for lesser injuries in one of China’s largest ports, just south of Shanghai.

State media said more than 30 people were taken to hospital. The Xinhua news agency said the explosion happened in a demolished factory at around 9:00 am (0100 GMT).

A later statement by the city’s Jiangbei district, the scene of the blast, said 16 people were still being treated for minor injuries while an undisclosed number had left hospital. CCTV said on Sunday evening that no one else was believed trapped in the rubble.

Industrial accidents are common in China, where safety standards are often lax.

Aerial images posted by the People’s Daily on Twitter showed at least four wrecked buildings around a wasteland of concrete debris.

Helmeted rescuers were seen carrying injured people away from the area, while others stood over a person lying on the ground.

Pieces of concrete, wood and glass were strewn across a wide area. Metal gates were twisted open and windows blown out of buildings.

The explosion sent chunks of masonry lying around the area, where buildings were already being demolished, according to Beijing newspaper Xinjing Bao.