Deadly explosion in North China caused by gas leakage

Preliminary investigations indicate that the explosion in Yanjiao town of Sanhe city, Hebei province was caused by a gas pipeline leak, Liu Fulai, head of the expert group of the accident investigation team told media on Thursday afternoon.

Liu said that the ignition point of the explosion was located within the overall building structure. However, further investigation is needed to determine the specific location. A previous statement by the city's emergency management bureau said it was at a fried chicken restaurant, one of the businesses held within the building.

Ji Hongtu, director of the city's emergency management bureau, said that the underground pipeline network is complex. Older pipelines have been in use for over 20 years, with the deepest being 12 meters underground, making it difficult to determine whether there was a single-point or multi-point leak.

The explosion was not directly related to improper operations by some business owners, Ji added.

The explosion on Wednesday morning led to seven deaths and 27 injuries.

Xinhua News Agency contributed to the story.