China explosion: Death toll rises to 7 after blast

Authorities in a southern Chinese city say that a deadly explosion was sparked while workers unloaded banned caps for children's toy guns and that the toll from the blast rose to seven dead and 36 injured.

Tuesday's blast was ruled accidental, the Guangzhou Internet Information office said.

Police detained three people, including a Jordanian man who owned the product, following the blast in Guangzhou, southern China's commercial hub, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

The blast went off in a truck container and then set fire to a nearby warehouse, sending up huge plumes of smoke. The caps contained gunpowder in small round plastic rings, and the production and transport of such materials is banned in China, Xinhua said.

It was the second deadly blast to strike China in two days.

An explosion Monday on a busy street outside a school in the southern resort city of Guilin killed two people and injured 17, including 10 students. That was believed to have been caused by the detonation of explosive materials being transported aboard a flatbed tricycle, and city authorities ordered a safety crackdown in its wake.

AP