Bangkok: At least three people were killed and five injured when a blast thought to be from an oxygen tank tore through a dozen buildings in a province near Bangkok on Thursday, Thai police said.

Police said the incident was believed to have happened when customers returned an oxygen canister to a shop in Chachoengsao province.

“Three people including the shop owner were killed and of the five injured, three are in a critical condition,” said local police officer Lieutenant Colonel Prompong Theptubtim.

He said the oxygen tank was bought to inflate balloons and was thought to have been shaken as it was returned.

Images on Thai media showed a body lying on the street outside rows of shops, many with their frontage blown out or severely damaged.