A restaurant in China’s Hebei province suddenly exploded Wednesday morning, killing two people and injuring 26 others, Reuters reported, citing Chinese state media and local authorities.
The deadly blast was captured on video and uploaded to Twitter by CBS News. The video appears to show a woman getting hit on the street by the “falling debris” as what appeared to be restaurant staff rushed by. (RELATED: Beijing Scrambles To Defend TikTok Amid Looming Threat Of US Ban)
A woman was hit by falling debris when a massive blast destroyed a restaurant in China’s northern Hebei province on Wednesday, killing at least one person and injuring 22 others, Chinese state media reported.
It remains unclear what happened to the woman and the explosion is… pic.twitter.com/gOLMr0Hj1P
— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 13, 2024
“It remains unclear what happened to the woman [that was hit],” CBS News tweeted.
At least three buildings sustained major damages from the blast, and buildings opposite to the explosion site had their windows shattered and shop signs damaged, CNN reported.
The explosion was suspected to be triggered by a gas leak, officials said in a statement, Reuters noted. “I was at home when I heard a loud blast, I initially thought it might be a gunshot,” Zhao Li, a local who lived near the restaurant, said, the outlet reported. “The loud explosion was accompanied by a crash of glass and clouds of smoke.”
The regional gas supplier, Taida Gas, suspended service to nearby areas as a precaution following the incident, Reuters reported.