Gas-cylinder blast confirmed cause of deadly house collapse

The Shanghai government confirmed on Sunday that the explosion of a liquefied gas cylinder caused the collapse of a three-story, wood-frame house that killed two and injured three.

The three injured people were hospitalized, and four others escaped unscathed after the run-down building collapsed at 4:49 am on Sunday, Shanghai's Hongkou district government said in a statement.

The rescue effort was still underway when China Daily reporters arrived at the site in downtown Shanghai at around 10 am. Police cordoned off the block where the building was located, and an ambulance was seen parked nearby. Pictures show the house was destroyed, leaving only a heap of ruins.