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Five killed in Durban smelting plant blast

South Africa - Blast at plant
South Africa - Blast at plant

Five people have been killed and several others injured in an explosion at a smelting plant near Durban in South Africa.

A blast and subsequent fire ripped through a ferromanganese furnace yesterday morning at the Assmang plant in Cato Ridge, about 60km from Durban in the eastern KwaZulu-Natal province.

Five people were being treated for injuries at hospitals in Durban and nearby Pietermaritzburg.

Water leakage into a furnace is suspected to have caused the explosion.