Three employees of a restaurant in downtown Beijing and some passers-by were injured in a gas cylinder explosion at the restaurant Friday morning, Xinhua learned.

The wounded were rushed to hospital. Their injuries are not life threatening. The number of injured passers-by is not known yet.

A local resident surnamed Sun said he heard the explosion around 9 a.m.

Another witness, a woman surnamed Qiao, said the restaurant in Xinjiekou in Xicheng District of central Beijing collapsed after the blast.

Police are investigating.

(Xinhua News Agency September 25, 2009 )