According to reports more than 300 people have been injured in a huge explosion that shook the Chinese port city of Tianjin late on Wednesday.
The blast were caused by a shipment of explosives that went up in flames just before midnight local time at industrial port in north-east of the country. It caused secondary explosions and fires in the surrounding area.
RT reports: State news agency Xinhua reported that the fire had been brought under control, but that contact had been lost with two firefighters.
The blast had erupted from a shipment of explosives in a key industrial zone in Binhai New Area at about 11:30 pm local time (3:30 pm GMT), state broadcaster China Central Television said. The initial blast set off a chain of explosions in nearby industrial sites.
Images released by state media showed evacuated people running in the streets.
The blast wave shattered windows in some residential areas, witnesses say.
“All of a sudden there was a flash of big red light, and a big sound. And 10 seconds afterwards, there was a big wave,” the South China Morning Post cited one online user.
Tianjin is a major port city southeast of Beijing with population of more than 7.5 million people.
Niamh Harris