A blast at a fireworks factory in central China kills 9 people

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BEIJING (AP) — An explosion at a fireworks factory in central China has killed nine people and injured 26 others, state media said Tuesday.

A huge plume of smoke could be seen rising into the sky after the Monday morning blast in a video posted online by state media. The Shanzhou Fireworks Co. factory is in a mountainous part of Linli county, north of the city of Changde in Hunan province.

The risk of further explosions and the lack of a major water source complicated the firefighting and the search for victims, state broadcaster CCTV said in an online report around midday Tuesday. Firefighters set up remote-controlled water cannons and brought in 28 water tankers and two trucks with high-powered pumps.

The Ministry of Emergency Management sent a working team to the site. The cause of the explosion was under investigation.