Five killed in factory explosion in eastern China

Five workers were killed and three injured in a factory explosion caused by a gas leak in eastern China, local authorities said Saturday.

The blast happened Friday night at a perlite workshop in Shandong province, city officials said in a statement.

All five victims were inside the Qingzhou city workshop during the explosion.

“The cause of the accident was initially found to be a liquefied natural gas leak, and the specific cause is under further investigation,” the statement said.

A company official has also been detained by local authorities, it added.

The incident came barely a week after one of China’s worst recent industrial accidents, in which an explosion at a chemical plant killed 78 people.