A truck loaded with 5 tons of gunpowder and headed to a fireworks factory in China"s central Hubei province exploded, killing four people, authorities said. The explosion Saturday on the Beijing-Zhuhai highway near Hubei"s Xiaogan city also injured several people and caused widespread damage, Xinhua news agency reported. "The blast cut the road up to 10 meters long (32 feet) and one meter (3.2 feet) deep. More than 700 square meters (7,534 square feet) of road surface were blown up," a highway administration official said. The blast destroyed three vehicles and caused cracks in more than 2,000 homes in a nearby village, the report said. Police said the two drivers in the truck abandoned the vehicle and ran after seeing one of its tires on fire. The drivers and the cargo owner have been detained for investigation, Xinhua reported.
