A man on Sunday threw a "homemade beer bottle explosive" triggering a blast at China's second biggest airport in the commercial hub of Shanghai which injured five persons, including a woman and a foreigner, before attempting suicide by severing his throat, state media reported.
The blast at Shanghai Pudong International Airport, the gleaming east Chinese city's main international airport, occurred at around 2:20 pm when a man threw a "homemade beer bottle explosive" to a check-in counter in Terminal 2, Xinhua news agency reported, citing a statement by the Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau.
After the explosion, the man took a knife from his backpack, cut his neck and then fell to the ground, police said.
The suspect, currently in critical condition, was under emergency treatment, the report said, adding that five persons were injured but did not clearly mention if it included the man who triggered the explosion.
Four passengers, including a Philippine national, were slightly injured by shards of glass and were being treated in hospital.
In an earlier report, the injured were said to include a 53-year-old Philippine man, as well as a 67-year-old man and a 64-year-old woman, both of whom are Chinese. They sustained injuries to their heads, hands and legs, doctors said.
An initial investigation has found evidence suggesting that the man's injury could have been self-induced, hinting he might have set off the blast.
A few flights were affected as their passengers were scheduled to check in at the explosion site, but the airport is now in normal operation, it said.
The area was quickly cordoned off by authorities, who have launched an investigation into the incident.
Eyewitnesses said that passengers ran for safety after a loud bang rocked the hall.
"A beer bottle filled with white smoke rolled right by my feet. I was scared and ran at once," said an eyewitness.
Photos and video clips posted online showed dense grey smoke at the terminal, and paramilitary security forces rushing into the building. They also showed police keeping people away from the scene and abandoned luggage littering the floor.
In 2013, a wheelchair-bound man set off a bomb at Beijing airport to highlight a personal grievance. He later received a six-year prison sentence.