A blast occurred Monday in an eastern Pakistani village killed 16 people, including 7 children, and injured 70 others, local TV reported.

About 100 houses were completely destroyed in the explosion near Mian Channu, a city in eastern Pakistan's Punjab province, eyewitnesses said. Reports said about half of the village have been affected by the blast and many houses are caving-in, trapping more people inside.

Mian Channu is not far from Lahore, the capital of Punjab, which has been a target of several militant attacks in recent months. The biggest attacks have targeted the visiting Sri Lankan cricket team in March, leaving seven people, including five policemen, dead and six Sri Lankan players injured.

Reports said the blast occurred in the house of a school teacher and there was no sign of suicide attack. According to local police, the blast was very loud and it caused a 40-foot wide and 8-foot deep crater at the ground.

The locals said the rescue team reached spot more than one hour late. TV reports said several bodies and about 50 injured have been brought to hospital. It said a child's body has been taken out of the debris and several people are still buried under debris of the collapsed houses.

(Xinhua News Agency July 13, 2009)