Two people were killed at 11 others were killed after a running minibus exploded Saturday morning in downtown Liuyang city of central China's Hunan Province, said local government.

The injured had been hospitalized and they were in a stable condition, according to the city's publicity department.

The blast happened at around 7:40 a.m. on Saturday when the minibus were passing by a clinic in the Hehua Street. It was not clear if the victims included any pedestrians, according to the department.

The vehicle, which registered in Changsha, the provincial capital, were left only with chassis after explosion. Police later condoned off the site and the traffic of the street were suspended for more than 3 three hours.

Investigation into the cause of the explosion was underway and police did not rule out the possibility of a vehicle breakdown.

(Xinhua News Agency February 24, 2008)