Emergency responders were still struggling to free the trapped victims. (Representative)
Beijing:
Four people were killed and more than 50 injured after an oil tanker truck exploded on a highway near Wenling in eastern China on Saturday, the local government said.
The impact of the explosion caused some neighboring rural houses and factories to collapse, according to a government announcement on social media, and sent huge clouds of black smoke into the air as the flames engulfed several cars on and near the highway.
The accident occurred at 4:40 p.m. on the expressway outside the city of Wenling in Zhejiang Province, the statement said.
Dramatic video footage released by state media showed a huge fireball firing into the air as people shouted.
In a clip, a large piece of debris gushes up into the air before crashing into some neighboring buildings.
Another video shows the remains of the tank truck and several crushed truck tires in a building that had been destroyed.
Rescuers were still fighting to free the victims trapped on Saturday evening, and the injured had been sent to hospital for treatment, public television CCTV reported.
Several highway exits have been closed, local police said on social media.
Fatal road accidents are common in China, where traffic rules are often broken or unenforced.
According to authorities, 58,000 people were killed in accidents across the country in 2015, according to the latest figures available.
Traffic violations were attributed to almost 90% of the accidents that resulted in death or injury that year.
Last year at least 36 people died and 36 others were injured in eastern China when a coach wrapped in a punctured tire collided with a truck.
(This story has not been edited by GalacticGaming staff and is automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)
