Thirteen people were killed and one seriously injured in an explosion at a power plant in Wu'an City in north China's Hebei Province when the plant began trial operation on Thursday afternoon.

The blast took place in the state-owned China Xinxing Cast Group Co. Ltd. around 4:10 PM, according to sources from the Hebei provincial production safety authority.

All but one of the injured are in stable condition. The total number of injured is not known.

The power plant was built to generate electricity by using waste gas from factories. It was scheduled to start operations on September 28, according to plant officials.

Leading officials of provincial and local governments rushed to the spot soon after the blast. Causes of the accident are still under investigation.

(Xinhua News Agency September 24, 2004)