Japan: Fatal blast at Mitsubishi Materials factory
At least five people have been killed in an explosion at a chemical factory in central Japan, police say.
A further 17 people are reported to have been injured in the blast at a plant run by Mitsubishi Materials in Yokkaichi city, in Mie prefecture.
Maintenance crews were working on a heat exchanger used in the production of silicon products when the blast happened, a plant spokesman told AFP.
Mitsubishi Materials makes automotive, electronics and construction products.
Its Yokkaichi plant - based some 350km (220 miles) west of Tokyo - specialises in producing silicon.
