At least three people were killed and seven others injured in a
pipeline explosion in Taiyuan, capital of north China's Shanxi
Province, on Saturday.
The explosion occurred at 11:18 a.m. and blew off road surface
in the Yingze South Street, said Geng Yanbo, vice mayor of
Taiyuan.
The casualties were guests to a wedding banquet at a nearby
hotel and migrant workers who were paving the road at the time of
explosion, said the vice mayor.
One person died on the spot while the other two
died later from injuries in the hospital. The seven injured people
are still receiving treatment in hospital.
Witnesses accused the wedding undertakers of
lighting firecrackers, which ignited the blast of gas pipeline
underground. But the wedding undertakers said the wedding ceremony
had not started when the explosion took place. They said that the
workers might accidentally cut the gas pipeline and triggered the
blast.
The gas pipeline was confirmed to be intact and the
pipeline that exploded did not belong to the gas company,
either.
Investigators were not sure what triggered the
blast. The investigation continues.
Police have detained the wedding ceremony
undertakers and the people in charge of the road paving
project.
(Xinhua News Agency December 16, 2007)