( CNN ) -- An explosion early Thursday rocked a neighborhood in the city of Yangon killing 20 people and injuring more than 95 , Myanmar 's state-run television MR TV reported . The blast occurred in Mingalar Taung Nyunt , a mainly residential area about a 15 minute-drive from central Yangon , the country 's former capital . It struck a compound of warehouses that the government rents out to private businesses . `` I ca n't tell what is the exact cause of the incident but it is unlikely from man-made bombs , '' said a police official , who declined to be identified because he was not authorized to speak to the media . The authorities are investigating the explosion , he said . A fire official said the series of explosions may have come from large quantities of sulfur , ammonia and sulfur trioxide , which becomes sulfurous acid when mixed with water , stored at the compound . Win Tun , who lives near the warehouses , said she heard a `` very big , loud noise of explosion , '' which prompted startled residents to try to flee . `` Some people ran in the wrong way . I did n't know where to run to , '' she said , adding that the initial blast was followed by a string of other explosions . The dead include four firefighters , MR TV reported . The strength of the explosion shattered the windows of nearby houses .
NEW : Official says water , gas and sulfur trioxide may have caused the explosion . The cause of the blast is unlikely to have been a bomb , a police official says . A witness reports hearing a ' very big , loud noise of explosion ' before fleeing . The explosion occurred in a residential area of Yangon .