Taiwan gas blast kills 22, injures 270

The explosion ripped through Taiwan's southern city of Kaohsiung in the early hours of Friday morning.

Plumes of smoke billowed across the horizon.

Residents told local television that some smoke with a "gas-like smell" came out of the drains shortly before the blast.

The explosion was so powerful it ripped open roads, overturned cars and sent flames flying dozens of metres into the air.

Several people were killed.

The Kaohsiung fire department said it was caused by a gas leak.

Some residents compared the force of the explosion to an earthquake.

Rescuers formed a chain to pull dozens of injured from a vast crater in the street.

Hundreds of those injured by the blast were taken to hospital for treatment.

Daylight revealed the true extent of the devastation.

The damage to buildings and roads made rescue efforts difficult for firefighters, searching for people beneath the rubble.

Police have been deployed to reinforce emerg