A major explosion hit China’s megaport city of Ningbo on Sunday, killing at least two people, injuring dozens and wrecking buildings, state media and local authorities said.
The Ningbo government said on a social media account that the blast occurred in a “vacant lot” but it did not provide details about what may have caused it.
Local authorities said two people died, two were seriously injured and an unidentified number were being treated for injuries in the major port city.
State media said more than 30 people were hospitalized, with the Xinhua news agency reporting that the explosion had taken place in a demolished factory at around 9 a.m.
Industrial accidents are common in China, where safety standards are often lax.
Television images showed cars twisted and mangled by the force of the explosion, a plume of grey smoke rising in the sky, and debris scattered for dozens of meters around the site of the incident.
Images showed cars twisted and mangled and debris scattered for dozens of meters after an explosion in Ningbo, China’s eastern Zhejiang province which killed at least two.
Aerial images posted by the People’s Daily on Twitter showed at least four wrecked buildings around a wasteland of concrete debris.
Footage showed rescuers wearing helmets carrying injured people away from the area, while others stood over a person lying on the ground.