QUETTA, Jan 7: At least two people, a Frontier Corps soldier and a civilian girl, were killed and many others injured when a gas pipeline blew up and caught fire during a gun battle between armed men and law-enforcement personnel in the Sui township on Friday night.

"Dozens of rockets and mortar shells were fired from both sides during the two-hour clash," the sources said. A rocket hit the 16-inch diameter pipeline supplying raw gas from the field to the compressor plant, official sources said, adding that the main compressor and purification unit were safe.

"The purification plant and all other installations of the Sui gas field are safe," a senior officer of the plant told Dawn on telephone from Sui. The gas supply was not affected, the sources said.

It is learnt that the assailants started firing rocket and mortar shells in Lundi area, some 3kms from the Sui Township, at around 8:45p.m., hitting a pipeline supplying gas to the main compressor plant. The pipeline caught fire which was controlled by stopping the supply of gas from the main field.

Personnel of Frontier Corps protecting pipelines and other installations returned fire. Rockets, mortar shells and other heavy weapons were used in the cross-fire which continued far over one hour.

The firing stopped at around 9:50p.m., but started again at around 10:35p.m. and continued till 11:45p.m. A minor girl and one soldier of the Frontier Corps were killed and many others were injured.

"Yes, two persons including a girl were killed in the firing," provincial Home Secretary Aftab Jamal told Dawn, adding that the firing had stopped and the fire in the pipeline had been brought under control. He said that many official vehicles were damaged.

A senior officer of the Sui administration said that the supply of gas from main plant was not stopped to any area of the country. "Gas supply is continuing to all areas of the country," DEO Sui M. Akbar said. He said that a hotel close to a petrol pump was also hit in the rocket attack.