Wednesday, May 4 2005 08:03 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Islamabad: At least 25 people, including many women and children, were killed and several injured when multiple gas explosions ripped through a building housing an ice cream factory in eastern Pakistan city of Lahore yesterday (May 3, 2005).

Emergency crews rushed to the scene and were sifting through the rubble of the three-storey building to free trapped survivors, raising apprehension that the death toll could rise, police said.

Residents said some 40 people lived in the apartment.

Quoting doctors, reports from Lahore said 25 people were killed in the collapse, while the State-run PTV reported that 11 persons were confirmed dead and several still feared trapped inside.

Four women and two children are among those killed in the blast, which is suspected to have triggered by gas cylinders stored in the building's basement.

At least 18 people were injured in the blast and were shifted to local hospitals.

The blast occurred at about 03:00 hrs (IST) (03:30 hrs IST) when most of the residents were fast asleep, district mayor Mian Aamir Mehmood said. The explosion, which could be heard around the city also damaged nearby houses, he added.

The building housed a small ice-cream factory as well as workers' quarters and some residential flats. Two nearby buildings were collapsed and the explosion also partially damaged other buildings smashing glass windows.

The district administration has ordered a probe into the incident, Mehmood said. Police, meanwhile, has ruled out the possibility of terrorist involvement in the blast.