The explosion took place near Beijing and is the latest in a series of incidents often blamed on lax safety standards.
At least one person is dead and 22 injured after a suspected gas explosion at a restaurant in northern China.
The explosion occurred shortly before 8 a.m. (0000 GMT) on Tuesday in the city of Sanhe, less than 50 kilometers (30 miles) east of the capital, Beijing.
The explosion is suspected to have been caused by a gas leak at a fried chicken shop, state broadcaster CCTV reported, adding that the injured were taken to hospital.
China has suffered a series of fatal accidents in recent months, often caused by lax safety regulations and poor enforcement.
Rescuers rushed to the site of the Sanhe explosion, and the local Langfang fire service said 36 emergency vehicles and 154 personnel had been dispatched.
Police cordoned off streets and diverted people from the area.
“The fire is currently under effective control and rescue work is being carried out urgently,” he said.
Video clips on Chinese social media platform Weibo showed destroyed building facades, many smashed cars and glass scattered on surrounding streets. Some objects were on fire.
Another video on Chinese social media that was verified by the AFP news agency showed what appeared to be a building that had completely collapsed and debris scattered across the street.
Last month, at least 15 people were killed and 44 injured in a fire at a residential building in the eastern city of Nanjing.
In January, dozens of people died after a fire broke out at a store in the central city of Xinyu, and the state news agency Xinhua reported that the fire had been caused by the “illegal” use of fire by workers in the basement of the store.
That fire took place just days after a school fire in central Henan province killed 13 schoolchildren as they slept in a dormitory.
National media reports suggested the fire was caused by an electric heating device.
