SHIJIAZHUANG, July 15 (Xinhua) -- Chinese police were searching for a furniture store owner on Tuesday in northern Hebei Province after a fire killed nine people and injured another.

    The blaze broke out at about 10 a.m. on Monday at the three-story Sunshine Furniture Store in Quyang County, about 200 km southwest of Beijing.

    The fire gutted sofas and bed stands on the first floor and didn't spread to the upper two floors, said Liu Wei, head of the Quyang fire-fighting brigade. But the cause of the fire was yet to be confirmed.

    The fire did not affect neighboring shops, Liu said.

    The store owner surnamed Chen was not in the shop when the accident took place and remained missing on Tuesday, bringing difficulty for identifying the victims, said Li Yinfeng, Quyang deputy head.

    Local residents and witnesses said the fire might have triggered an explosion of LPG cylinders because they heard a big "bang," and the victims were mostly Chen's employees, family members and relatives.

    Local authorities were investigating the accident.