Emergency services inspect the scene of an explosion site in Xi’an, capital city of China’s Northwest Shaanxi province, Nov 14, 2011. [Photo/Xinhua]

XI'AN - At least nine people were killed and 34 others injured after an explosion Monday morning ripped through a restaurant in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province.

The 7:30 am blast blew out from the first floor of the Jiatian International Mansion, a commercial building in the Gaoxin district.

A fireman at the scene said the explosion shattered windows in nearby buildings, destroyed a bus stop and obliterated dozens of cars parked in the neighborhood.

An initial investigation blamed a liquefied petroleum gas leak, according to the Xi'an municipal government.

Rescuers retrieved a woman's body from the debris Monday afternoon, while the city's hospitals reported eight other victims had died.

Meanwhile, of the 34 injured in the explosion, seven were in critical condition, the municipal health bureau said.

The fireman said most of the victims were pedestrians walking by the building, including children on their way to school.

Rescue work ended around 11 am and all of the injured had been sent to local hospitals for treatment, said a spokesman with the municipal government.

Local fire control authorities have sealed off the area, fearing further blasts.

Gong Yejian, an 11-year-old primary school student, was passing by the building when the explosion rocked the neighborhood.

"The blast knocked me down with glass fragments hitting my body from head to toe. The tree near me fell down as well," said the hospitalized student with face and hand wounds.

A witness said he saw dense smoke funneling up from the wrecked mansion's ground floor. "Many residents rushed out from the building's gate, with heads and hands bleeding," the witness said, adding that the explosion also injured people driving by.

Glass shards, window frames and even air conditioners from the restaurant were found in a residential compound about 50 meters south of the Jiatian International Mansion, according to residents living nearby.

"I heard a blast, and then I saw two girls running out of the compound. Blood completely covered them," said a motorcycle-taxi driver surnamed Liu who was looking for passengers at the time of the blast.

The injured were being treated at the Gaoxin Hospital and the Provincial People's Hospital, which have set up elite medical squads for the injured.

The Provincial People's Hospital had received a 27-year-old woman with multiple injuries from glass shards and stones. A doctor said the patient could only breathe with the help of a respirator.

In case of further blasts, local authorities temporarily suspended natural gas supply for residential buildings near the accident zone.

Zhao Zhengyong, governor of Shaanxi, has visited the hospitalized victims. He also asked local authorities to overhaul safety loopholes citywide.