Firefighters work the scene of an explosion in Sanhe city in northern China’s Hebei province on Wednesday, March 13, 2024. Rescuers were responding to a suspected gas leak explosion Wednesday in a building in northern China, authorities said. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)
BEIJING (AP) – Rescuers were responding to a suspected gas leak explosion Wednesday in a building in northern China that has killed two people and injured 26, authorities said.
The explosion came early in the morning from a fried chicken shop in the city of Sanhe, authorities said in a short statement. The city is just an hour drive west of Beijing.
Police cordoned off streets 1 kilometer (over half a mile) out from the explosion, Associated Press reporters saw, and were directing people away.
Fire engines were still arriving at the scene as of 11 a.m., and a truck could be seen hauling away a burnt-out car with its windows gone. Pieces of the building’s frame stood at a tilt above piles of rubble.
Over 150 firefighters were sent to bring the flames under control, according to national broadcaster CCTV. Videos online showed smoke billowing out of a mid-level commercial building at an intersection.
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AP video producer Olivia Zhang contributed to this report.
