The blast took place in the Beiying neighbourhood of Xiaodian district in Shanxi’s capital Taiyuan at around 1 pm local time.
The fire triggered by the blast has been extinguished, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
No further details were provided.
Rescue teams are conducting door-to-door safety checks in the affected building, and an investigation into the cause of the blast is underway.
The incident took place a day after 22 people were killed in a restaurant fire in Liaoyang city of Liaoning province on Tuesday.
It was the second major fire incident in China this month.
On April 9, 20 elderly people were killed in a fire at a nursing home in north China’s Hebei province.
A total of 39 elderly people were in the building when the blaze broke out at the nursing home in Longhua county of Chengde city. PTI KJV SCY SCY