Four people were killed and twenty-one were injured by a strong furnace blast at a chemical plant Wednesday afternoon in Hukou County of east China's Jiangxi Province.

A fire broke out at the melting furnace at the nitration workshop section of the Jiujiang Fuda Industrial Co., Ltd at 03: 52 p.m. Wednesday. The melting furnace exploded about ten minutes later, killing two people on the spot and injuring twenty-three.

Two of the wounded failed to survive in the hospital.

A rescue effort and further investigation of the accident are still underway.

Source: Xinhua