SHIJIAZHUANG - Twelve people were confirmed dead when an explosion went off at a chemical plant in North China's Hebei province Tuesday morning, police said.

The accident happened at around 9 am at Kaer Chemical Plant in Zhaoxian County, said Cheng Weiqing, vice chief of Shijiazhuang public security bureau.

The blast flattened one of the factory's workshops and broke window panes within a radius of 2,000 meters, Cheng quoted witnesses as saying.

More than forty injured people were hospitalized to receive treatment, according to Cheng. And tremors were felt in at least three villages near the plant, Cheng said.

Mayor of Shijiazhuang, the provincial capital, led a team of rescuers to the site.

快讯：今日上午，位于河北赵县的河北克尔化工有限公司1号车间发生爆炸，抢救工作的救援人员在现场忙碌的进行工作。此后，中石化的专业救援队也加入到工作中去。目前死亡人数增至12人，受伤的40余人已经在医院救治。人们无心讨论事故发生的原因，更关注人民的生命问题，等待新的结果出现。

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