BEIJING, Nov. 24 (Xinhuanet) -- An explosion has ripped through a hotpot restaurant in the city of Jinzhong in north China’s Shanxi Province, killing 14 people and injuring 47.

The explosion happened at around 8pm Friday in a dual-layer, 3-hundred square-meter construction. When the accident took place, nearly 100 people were eating at the establishment. After the explosion, fire-fighers were on the scence to carry out rescue work.

17 diners were seriously injured. The explosion ignited a fire which destroyed the interior of the restaurant. A customer injured in the explosion tells us how he escaped.

Wu Dongyong, Injured Diner, said, "The explosion happened on the first floor. We could not see anything after the explosion. When the fire started, we were able to escape from the restaurant. I escaped on my own, most of us ran out ourselves. But we don’t know what happened after we escaped. I think it might have been caused by a gas leak. My hand was injured when I ran out from the restaurant.

(Source: CNTV.cn)