DHAKA: At least seven people have been killed after a gas pipeline exploded in the Bangladeshi port city of Chittagong.

The gas pipeline exploded in front of a five-storey building, blowing walls off the building, a local police official said, citing witnesses. Eight people who were injured in the blast have been taken to hospital.

News reports said the road in front of the explosion site was busy with people and tricycle rickshaws, and that a boundary wall fell on the people on the road.

It was not immediately clear what caused the explosion.

(Agencies)