Photos:Two die and 32 injured after bus bursts into flames in Guangzhou

GUANGZHOU, July 15 -- Two people died at the scene and 32 were landed in hospital with injuries after a bus explosion in Guangzhou Tuesday evening, police said.

Most of the victims suffered burn-related injuries and were being treated at three hospitals in downtown Guangzhou, a spokesman with the municipal public security bureau said.

Of the eight critical cases under intensive care, four suffered burns exceeding 80 percent of the body surface, he said. "Doctors say it might take two to four weeks for the severest cases to be out of danger."

Police received reports of the explosion at 7:46 p.m., and the flames were put out at 8:03 p.m., he said.

The cause of the accident was still under investigation, the official told Xinhua in a midnight interview.

Top officials with the Guangdong provincial government and the city government of Guangzhou ordered all-out rescue efforts and timely investigation into the cause of the explosion.[More...]