21 killed, five injured in China power station blast

At least 21 were killed and five others injured in a steam-pipe explosion at a power station in central China.

The blast took place at Dangyang city about 3:20 p.m. local time on Thursday, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The state-run Xinhua News Agency said three of the five injured were in serious condition and that the cause of the explosion wasn't clear.

While the local officials were on site to oversee rescue efforts, working team were deployed by State Administration of Work Safety -China's industrial-safety regulator.

The images from the scene which was shared by state-news outlets on social media, showed flames and massive smoke billowing from the accident site.

Thursday's blast took place a day before the first anniversary of massive explosions in a hazardous-material warehouse in China's Tianjin city that killed 173 people.

The series of explosions last year is one of China's worst industrial accidents in recent years.

The incident prompted a top government-level investigation and a nationwide campaign aimed at boosting enforcement of industrial-safety standards.

Last year again in December, more than 70 people were killed when a landfill collapsed in the southern Shenzhen city.

While the Authorities blamed shoddy management and poor safety supervision for that disaster, municipal agencies were also criticised for regulatory negligence.