Explosion, fire reported at central Japan's thermal power station

An explosion occurred Wednesday at a thermal power station in central Japan's Aichi prefecture, with fire and rising black smoke seen on site, according to local media.

The blast took place at around 3pm local time at the plant run by JERA Co., a joint venture between Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. and Chubu Electric Power Co., local police said.

Local fire departments and authorities so far confirmed no injuries resulting from the explosion at the JERA Taketoyo Thermal Power Station.

The explosion is believed to have occurred within the boiler facility on the 13th floor of the building, national news agency Kyodo reported, citing firefighting officials and the prefectural police.

Fires have been observed emanating from conveyors used for transporting coal, with black smoke seen rising from three areas. Firefighting efforts are still underway.

An individual who was approximately 300 meters away from the explosion site told a local broadcaster that there was "a loud noise," followed by "an earthquake-like shaking" a few seconds later.

As per JERA's official website, the power plant, one of the largest thermal power stations in the country, utilizes coal and biomass as fuel sources, boasting a maximum output capacity of 1,070,000 kilowatts.

Investigations are ongoing to determine the cause of the explosion.