Blast occurs at railway station in Xinjiang

People wait at an entrance to the south railway station of Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, after an explosion on April 30. People in the square in front of the station and nearby were evacuated immediately after the blast, and police cordoned off all entrances to the square of the station. [Photo by Gao Bo/China Daily]

A blast occurred at a railway station in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Wednesday evening.

The explosion occurred around 7 p.m. Wednesday at the exit of the south railway station of Urumqi. Ambulances and police cars rushed to the scene.

As of 8:30 p.m., people in the square in front of the station and nearby had been evacuated, Xinhua reporters saw. Police are evacuating people in surrounding areas.

Police have cordoned off all entrances to the square of the station. Armed police have been deployed in the square.

Train services had been suspended at the station, a policeman at the scene told Xinhua.