Three people were killed in a gas explosion at a residential apartment in northeastern China on Thursday, according to officials.

The fire department was alerted to the blast at 11:45 a.m BJT in Shenyang, Liaoning Province. Firefighters rushed to the scene at No.33 Huashan Road in Huanggu district at 11:52 a.m. and managed to put out the fire 18 minutes later, Huanggu district government said in a statement.

The blast, which resulted from a gas leak, happened at Room No. 2 on the fourth floor. It burned 300 square meters and also damaged walls on the third and fifth floors.

The cause is under investigation.

(CGTN's Guan Yang contributed to this story.)