Two people were killed and several others injured in a gas explosion at a residential area on Saturday night in east China's Jiangsu Province, a local official said on Sunday.

The explosion occurred at 8:24 p.m. in a shop on the first floor of the Junyuehaoting Community at Chengxiang Township, Taicang City, an unnamed Taicang publicity official said.

He said an initial investigation showed the explosion was caused by gas.

The injured were rushed to a local hospital and two died there.

The cause of the incident is under investigation and no other details were immediately available.

(Xinhua News Agency June 15, 2009)