Explosion in oil refinery in Brod, northern Bosnia: Police

A powerful explosion hit the Brod oil refinery in northern Bosnia near the Croatian border on Tuesday and several workers were injured, police said.

Police and firefighters are trying to extinguish the blaze after the explosion at around 9.30 p.m. local time (1930 GMT), said police spokeswoman Dragana Kerkez.

"This was a strong explosion and the detonation could be heard in Slavonski Brod," Kerkez told Reuters, referring to the town just across the Sava river in Croatia.

Brod Mayor Ilija Jovicic said that some of the injured workers were hospitalized, the Srna news agency reported.

Photos taken on mobile phones and published on Bosnian websites showed a fire at the plant.

The Brod refinery is majority-owned by Russian state oil company Zarubezhneft.

(With inputs from agencies.)