Photo: Wang Peng/Xinhua/picture alliance/Deutsche Welle
At least 31 people were killed in an explosion at a restaurant in Yinchuan cityin northwestern China, the state media reported on Thursday (06.22.2023).
“A liquefied petroleum gas leak (…) caused an explosion during the operation of a barbecue restaurant,” the state agency Xinhua said about the explosion that occurred on Wednesday.
He added that seven people “receive rescue care” and one of them is in “critical condition.”
Two people suffered severe burns, two others had minor injuries and two had scratches caused by glass, Xinhua said.
⚡️More than 30 people died as a result of a gas explosion in a restaurant in Northern China pic.twitter.com/5Ukj5VYv7U
— War Monitor (@WarMonitors) June 22, 2023
Images from the state CCTV network showed more than a dozen firefighters working on the site, where smoke was emanating from a hole in the building’s façade.
Glass splinters and other debris littered the street, where other restaurants and entertainment venues operate.
The explosion occurred at around 8:40 p.m. (1240 GMT) on Wednesday at the Fuyang Barbecue Restaurant, in a residential area in the center of Yinchuan, capital of the autonomous region of Ningxia.
The accident occurred on the eve of the three-day Dragon Boat Festival holiday, when many in China go out to socialize with friends.
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