Explosion in China Kills Seven and Injures Dozens

Two vehicles carrying explosives detonated near an expressway ramp in southwest China, killing at least seven people and injuring about 200 more while destroying several homes on Tuesday.

According to the Associated Press, the official Xinhua News Agency said the blast occurred in the Guizhou province city of Fuquan.

Authorities and state media have not provided further details on the cause of the explosion, which occurred around midday at an auto repair workshop on a highway in Fuquan city. The two vehicles were transporting 70 tons of explosives, state media reported.
The surrounding buildings were very badly damaged and an investigation is underway to determine the cause.

According to CBS News, a man who answered the phone in the press office at the city's Communist Party branch said the blast was caused by three explosive-laden vehicles which also caught fire, destroying a garage and a food warehouse. The man, who refused to give his name, could not give details about what kind of explosives were involved.

According to CNN, out of the 200 people who were rushed to a local hospital, 25 of them are in critical condition. The People's Hospital in Fuquan received many of the injured, some of them lying on beds in corridors due to overcrowding.

Long Lifeng, a 40-year-old sales clerk at a nearby gas station, recalls hearing a loud noise before passing out from the force of the blast.

"After hearing the noise, my head and legs were hit by flying objects, and then I fell unconscious," said Long, who received four stitches in her head at the hospital. 

Photo by Andrey Belenko.