HARBIN - Six people were confirmed dead and four others injured in an explosion early Saturday that ripped through a residential building in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province, local authorities said Sunday.

The blast occurred at 4:50 am Saturday at the sixth floor of a building in the city of Mudanjiang. Rescuers pulled four injured people from the damaged building, and sent them to hospital for treatment, the publicity department of Mudanjiang city said.

Preliminary investigation revealed that an explosion of a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinder in a house at the sixth floor caused the accident.

Further investigation is underway.

Nearby residents have been evacuated to safety, according to the  publicity department.