BEIJING (AP) -- A Chinese state news agency says an explosion at a chemical plant in the northeast of the country has killed at least nine workers.
The official Xinhua News Agency said Thursday that the cause of the explosion in Daqing in Heilongjiang province was not immediately known. Five other people escaped the blast.
Xinhua says the Wednesday night blast caused a fire in a three-story building belonging to the Fuxing Chemical Plant.
Industrial accidents are common in China due to lax regulations and safety controls.