At least 10 people were killed in an explosion at a state-run steel plant in India's southern state of Andhra Pradesh, dpa quoted police as saying Thursday. The blast late Wednesday triggered a fire at the factory situated in the coastal city of Visakhapatnam. Nine more workers suffered serious burns. "Ten officials and workers died in the blast in the newly installed oxygen control unit which was undergoing a trial run," area police officer Janardhan Singh said. "The death toll is likely to go up as all the injured have sustained between 80- and 95-per-cent burn injuries," he said. Local reports said the impact of the blast was so powerful that cars parked outside the unit were thrown around 500 metres. The incident was reportedly the worst disaster in the history of the 40-year-old plant, among the biggest steel producers in India.
