Berlin, Jul 29 (IANS): An explosion followed by a fire erupted at BASF's plant in Ludwigshafen on Monday afternoon, causing minor injuries to 14 workers, the company reported.

The explosion occurred around noon in the southern section of the BASF SE site, with a smoke cloud clearly visible outside the plant premises, said the company on social media platform Facebook.

BASF announced that the fire had been extinguished, and the cause of the explosion is under investigation, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Ludwigshafen Fire Department issued instructions to the public, advising residents to keep windows and doors closed and to turn off air conditioning due to the heavy smoke. A hazard information hotline was also activated.

In 2016, an explosion and subsequent fires at the North Harbor of BASF's Ludwigshafen site resulted in the deaths of two BASF fire department employees and an employee of a tanker anchored in the harbour.