Ten people were killed and 117 others injured after a tank truck exploded and veered off an expressway in east China's Zhejiang Province Saturday afternoon, local authorities said.
The explosion that occurred around 4:40 p.m. near the village of Liangshan in the city of Wenling, has caused the collapse of some nearby residential houses and factory workshops along the Shenyang-Haikou Expressway, according to the local sources.
A total of 138 local firefighters and 34 fire engines were at the scene. Another 316 firefighters were called in to help with the rescue work, the Ministry of Emergency Management said.
Firefighters and rescuers were searching possible missing persons in the debris.
Lu Fang, who works at a nearby restaurant, told Xinhua that she heard a loud bang, and thought it was a flat tire commonly heard along the expressway. But people immediately started sharing news about the blast in WeChat groups, and some photos and videos showed the front of a row of houses had been shaved off in the explosion.
"The glass on the windows and doors of my home was all shattered. Luckily my mother and brother were unharmed," she said.
Sun Huashan, vice minister of emergency management, has been sent to Zhejiang to guide the rescue work.
