Explosion at China's Yanchang Petroleum Kills 5

An explosion at an oil drilling plant owned by China's government-backed Shaanxi Yanchang Petroleum Group has left five dead, five injured, while three are missing, a local county government said in a statement on Monday.

The accident occurred after the plant, Qilicun, started testing a new thermal technology to increase output on Sunday evening, according to the statement.

The plant, located 40 kilometers east of Yan'an city in northwestern province Shaanxi, is one of the oldest in China.

In 2017, Qilicun produced 385,500 tonnes of crude oil.

"Injured people have been taken to the hospital and their life signs are stable. Rescue work is continuing and the reason for the accident remains under investigation," the government said in its statement.

Yanchang could not be reached for comment. It was unclear if production had been halted at the plant.

(Reporting by Muyu Xu and Dominique Patton; Editing by Himani Sarkar)