Washington, June 8 (IANS) At least three people were killed and six injured while 10 others went missing after a powerful explosion in a natural gas line in Texas state, media reports said.

The explosion took place at around 2.40 p.m. local time Monday near Cleburne in Johnson County, Xinhua quoted Cleburne city manager Chester Nolen as telling local television news channels.

There was a massive flame and a huge plume of smoke, the reports said.

"About 2.40 p.m., we heard a loud explosion, rumbling, almost like a tornado. It shook our entire house," Laura Harlin, an eyewitness, said.

A gas company was working to turn off the underground gas line, while firefighters were trying to douse the flames, the reports said.

In a similar incident, at least seven workers, working inside a natural gas well in West Virginia state, were injured when their drill hit an underground pocket of methane gas and caused an explosion, officials said.

The blast occurred Monday at the site of an abandoned coal mine, 90 km from Pittsburgh in nearby Pennsylvania state. It created a column of fire 20 metres high.

The injured workers suffered burns and were undergoing treatment.