A village official in east China's Anhui Province has been detained for allegedly serving as a protection umbrella over an illegal fireworks factory which exploded on Sunday morning, killing seven people.

Ma Dianming, head of the Mazhuang Village Committee in Taihe County, is the younger brother of Ma Xiuying, the owner of the illegal factory who was killed in the explosion.

He admitted harboring and covering up illegal fireworks production, providing finance and helping store up explosives during police interrogation.

An explosion occurred on Sunday morning at a fireworks factory in Mazhuang Village in Daxin Township of Fuyang City, killing seven people and injuring 12 others. Most of the workers were transient workers above the age of 50.

A preliminary investigation showed Ma Xiuying, a 53-year-old woman, was responsible for the blast on Sunday. She rented a villager's private house as an illegal plant to produce fireworks without having obtained a license in advance.

Police are still investigating into matters such as the source of the raw materials and sales channel of the fireworks.

Compensation has yet to be decided since the responsible person, Ms Ma, was killed in the blast, while her son is in prison.

The injured, all suffering severe burns, are hospitalized.

Anhui Provincial Bureau of Work Safety has issued an emergency circular ordering all fireworks makers to suspend production until late September following Sunday's fatal explosion.

The bureau demanded a thorough safety checkup among the province's 330 registered fireworks factories and a strict ban on illegal production.