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Some 20 killed, over 80 injured in warehouse blast in Myanmar

29 December 2011 04:51 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. At least 17 people were killed and over 80 injured in a blast at a storage warehouse in Myanmarâ€™s largest city of Yangon on early Thursday, APA reports quoting Ria Novosti.

According to Reuters reports, an unexplained explosion hit a warehouse in the eastern suburb of Yangon at around 2:00 a.m. Thursday local time (19:30 GMT Wednesday).

A police officer said 12 men and five women have been confirmed dead after the explosion, but witnesses said earlier that about 50 dead bodies had been found, the agency said.

Associated Press reported that a fire broke out at the warehouse before the explosion and one of the firefighters combating the fire was killed in the blast.

All Yangonâ€™s firefighting units are currently combating the fire, which is spreading on nearby buildings, the agency reported.