KARACHI, Dec 24: Three men died and a fourth one was wounded in a blast that occurred in a welding plant in the Shershah area on Sunday. It was the third such blast in the last 13 days.

Police and eyewitnesses said the blast was so severe that the owner and his two associates died on the spot with their bodies torn into parts. The structure of the workshop was also destroyed in the blast. The victims were identified as Naseeb Shaikh, Abdul Rauf and a man that could not be identified immediately.

Badly injured Anis, an employee of the workshop, was rushed to the Civil Hospital where he was admitted for treatment. He is said to be in a critical condition.

The incident took place in the industrial area of Shershah close to the Urdu Bazaar where a welding plant having several gas cylinders blew up, resulting in instant fatalities.

The cause of the blast could not be known immediately, police said.

City police chief Tariq Jamil said the explosion was caused by a gas cylinder, adding that it was quite severe.

Officials of the bomb disposal squad also visited the scene of the blast. They ruled out any possibility of sabotage confirming that the blast was caused by the welding plant. They suggested that the welding plant must have developed some fault causing the accident.

Earlier, on December 12, five persons died and two others were injured when they were reportedly trying to hammer out an explosive device in Shireen Jinnah Colony.

On December 16, a low-intensity blast took place at a money exchange outlet in the Gurumandir area in which three persons were injured.