At least 25 dead in Taiwan gas explosions

A series of explosions caused by a gas leak killed 25 people and injured 267 in Taiwan's second-largest city of Kaohsiung on Friday, sending flames shooting 15 stories into the air, setting ablaze entire blocks and reducing shops to rubble.

Economic minister Chang Chia-juch told reporters that initial assessments suggested the blast was caused by a leak of propylene, a gas used in the production of plastics and fabrics.

Taiwan's Central News Agency reported that firefighters had been at the scene investigating reports of a gas leak when the explosions occurred. Four firefighters were among those killed.

Media reports suggested the death toll was likely to rise sharply.

President Ma Ying-jeou pledged tough measures to prevent any recurrence of the incident.

"We will make further arrangements and inspections to avoid this kind of disaster from occurring again," Ma said in comments shown on television after speaking via a video link with Kaohsiung's mayor.

Taiwan's Premier Jiang Yi-huah said at least five blasts shook the streets of Kaohsiung, a southwestern port city of 2.8 million.

Video from Taiwanese broadcaster ETTV showed a row of large fires burning in the middle of a street in the southwestern city, with smoke rising into the night sky.

Power was cut off in the area, making it difficult for firefighters to search for others who might be buried in rubble.

Closed-circuit television showed the explosion rippling through the floor of a motorcycle parking area, hurling concrete and other debris through the air.

Mobile phone video captured the sound of an explosion as flames leapt at least 30 feet into the air.

Video from TVBS showed locals searching for victims in shattered shop fronts. Rescue workers pulled several injured people from the rubble in the center of the road, placing them on stretchers as passers-by helped other victims on the sidewalk.

Kaohsiung Mayor Chen Chu said several petrochemical companies have pipelines built along the sewage system in Chian-Chen district, which has both factories and residential buildings.

Taiwan's two foremost petrochemical companies said their operations were unaffected by the blast.

An official from Formosa Petrochemical said that the company's facilities were not located near the disaster site and its factories were functioning normally.

"Our priority is to save people now. We ask citizens living along the pipelines to evacuate," Chen told TVBS television.

Kaohsiung authorities set up an emergency center to be staffed by servicemen coordinating the rescue operation.

By morning, firefighters were moving in protective white gear through streets covered in upturned asphalt and smashed vehicles.

The explosion left a large trench running down the center of one road, edged with piles of concrete slabs torn apart by the force of the blast.

Wire services