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Amber Wang

Luna Sun

Jack Lau

The death toll from a blast in northeastern China rose to four late on Thursday as emergency workers continued to sift through the rubble and displaced residents sought shelter from subzero temperatures expected overnight.
At least three people were seriously injured and 44 more sustained minor wounds in the explosion in a mixed-use residential building in Shenyang, Liaoning province, at about 8.20am.
The blast – thought to have been caused by a gas leak – blew out walls in the building, exposing its reinforcement bars, according to photos posted online by the Liaoning fire department.
It also shattered windows in several buildings and sent debris flying, hitting parked cars.


Police and firefighters evacuated nearby residents, and volunteers logged property damage.
The blast cut power supplies, affecting about 15,000 households, Guangzhou-based Nanfang Daily reported, quoting power company State Grid Shenyang.
Power company staff were at the scene but needed clearance from local authorities to go into the site to fix the damaged lines.
The explosion shattered all of the windows of a bus that had stopped at a traffic light nearby. The total number of casualties from the bus was unclear, but the driver was injured and sent to hospital.
Nearby roads were also blocked and guarded, with some residents frustrated at not being able to return home.﻿
One resident, a 37-year-old man with the surname Liao, said he lived on the fifth floor of the building where the explosion occurred and was sleeping at the time.
Liao said his windows were shattered, spraying glass on his bed and cutting his hand. “The scene is like a battlefield right now,” he said, adding that he was waiting for community workers to help find accommodation for the night.
The workers were organising free hotel accommodation for dozens of displaced residents crowded outside a community centre to register for a place to stay.
The local government said 36 hotels were offering accommodation for the displaced residents.

A woman living opposite the blast site said all of the windows in her block had been smashed. “I was scared when the explosion happened,” she said.
She said she was in her kitchen at the time and the room’s concrete ceiling was loosened by the blast.
Another resident said he lived two buildings away and was having breakfast when he heard the explosion. “I thought it was an earthquake, it was shaking so hard and my tea spilled everywhere,” he said.
A number of residents live-streamed the aftermath on social media, until they were told by police at the scene to stop filming and their feeds were suspended.
At least one live stream on Kuaishou, the country’s second most popular short video app, was taken down for displaying “acts of harming personal safety”.

Police have told shopkeepers in the area to close their stores, warning it might be dangerous to stay indoors.
The building where the explosion happened contained numerous small businesses, according to imagery uploaded to Baidu Maps in May last year.
Minister for Housing and Urban-Rural Development Wang Menghui ordered staff to the site and directed them identify the cause as quickly as possible, according to the ministry’s official newspaper China Construction News.
“We need to further guide and ensure everyone learns a deep lesson, start to inspect and rectify hidden dangers in the use of gas, effectively eliminating gas safety incidents to safeguard the lives and property of the people,” the official statement read.


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Gas leak suspected to be behind the blast in northeastern city of Shenyang
Community workers organise shelter, with temperatures expected to fall below zero overnight



Community workers organise shelter, with temperatures expected to fall below zero overnight.


China blast: death toll rises to 4 as residents seek refuge for the night

Gas leak suspected to be behind the blast in northeastern city of Shenyang Community workers organise shelter, with temperatures expected to fall below zero overnight

Gas leak suspected to be behind the blast in northeastern city of Shenyang

Community workers organise shelter, with temperatures expected to fall below zero overnight