An explosion rips through a restaurant in east China's Anhui Province on Saturday. (Photo/Chinanews.com)
Police in east China's Anhui Province have launched an investigation into three people after a fatal explosion at a restaurant killed 17 people on Saturday.
Zhang Baoping, 38, the owner of restaurant, and his wife, are being investigated by police for what the locals described as "an unusual accident causing great calamities." Another person involved in the restaurant's operation was also questioned.
"They improperly handled the fire situation. They doused a burning cylinder with water, causing it to explode in six minutes. Zhang failed to remove people from the crowded space," according to a statement issued by the Wuhu city government.
Police suspect Zhang was operating without a license.
The fire and explosion occurred at noon on Saturday in the restaurant on Yangjia alley, a popular snack street in the old town of Wuhu City, about 350 kilometers west of Shanghai.
Liquefied gas leaked through a disconnected valve from a cylinder, coming into contact with fire and causing the explosion, the government statement said.
A total of 17 people, including 14 students from two high schools, were eating in the 32-square-meter space. Most of them died of carbon monoxide poisoning.
"The burning cylinder was at the door front and blocked the way out. The people inside the restaurant retreated in face of the flames and had nowhere to escape," said Yang Tao, head of the Jinghu district fire brigade.
The restaurant is one of dozens of snack bars at the Yangjia alley, a decades-old snack street.
The Wuhu city government has launched a city-wide safety check following the blast.
