Four killed in blast at Chinese-owned quarry in Ghana

ACCRA (Reuters) - At least four people were killed, including one Chinese national, in an explosion at a granite quarry in western Ghana owned by Chinese company Omni Quarries late on Saturday, local officials said on Sunday.

It was not immediately clear what caused the blast, which destroyed buildings near the quarry in Shama district and left rubble strewn across swathes of agricultural land, said local disaster management official Michael Nyah.

Four more people are still missing while two are in a critical condition and being treated at a regional hospital, he told Reuters.

"Farmland around has been destroyed and the buildings that are not destroyed have ripped-off ceilings or cracked walls," he said.

It was not immediately possible to reach Omni for comment.

Community assemblyman Emmanuel Owu-Ewie said he was woken late on Saturday by parts of his ceiling collapsing.

"Everything has come down; all you see around are electricity poles and trees but the area has been flattened," he said.

He said rescue efforts were still underway.

(This story has been corrected to fix the day to 'Saturday' instead of 'Friday' in paragraph 6)

(Reporting by Maxwell Akalaare Adombila and Christian Akorlie; Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Frances Kerry)