NANJING - An explosion ripped through a chemical plant in East China's Changzhou city on Thursday evening.

No casualties have been reported so far following the blast, which occurred at 7:50 pm after a fire started at around 6 pm in the chemical plant of Yanjin Shihua Co., Ltd. in Luoxi Township of Xinbei District, according to local authorities.

Local security forces have dispatched fire brigades to the blast site and evacuated residents in neighboring villages. As of 11 pm Thursday, the fire was contained.

The cause of the explosion is to be further investigated.