he blasts occurred at the seat of Liucheng county, in the city of Liuzhou, and its surrounding areas, with the first bang heard at around 3.50pm, state media Xinhua reported. Five people died at the scene.

Local police said they had launched a criminal investigation and identified a 33-year-old male suspect, surnamed Wei, from Dapu township. The blasts were triggered by explosive devices hidden in express delivery packages, police said.

Nanguo Zaobao reported that Wei had since been arrested.

There were at least 17 blasts, media reports said, with targets of attack including the Dapu township government office, supermarkets, malls, a hospital, prison, bus terminal, an animal husbandry staff dormitory and a centre for infectious disease and prevention.

Explosions also occurred in other areas around Liuzhou, the media said, citing the city's public security department.

More than 50 people were injured in the blasts and two people missing, but the authorities had ruled out a terrorist attack, China National Radio reported, citing police information.

On Dapu's Dongcheng Road - one of the blast sites - part of a building had collapsed. Nearby vehicles were also damaged.

"I was sitting in my shop when I heard a sudden loud bang. I was in shock … My hair was flying in the air from the shock waves," said Li Acheng, 30, owner of a fruit store 350 metres from the collapsed building.

"Some windows in my shop broke. I walked outside to see what had happened and was almost hit by a falling window from the third floor.

"I saw half of a building nearby collapse.

"We were all very shocked and thought it might be an act of terrorism. All shops were closed and the town is under curfew with police guarding every street … It was very scary with so many attacks in just over an hour."

Li and his family left the town for a nearby village, fearing further attacks.

Pictures online showed injured victims, damaged buildings, and wrecked vehicles.

A witness told Thepaper.cn that she heard sounds of explosions while shopping at a mall for electrical appliances.

She remained traumatised by the shock of the blasts even hours later, she told the online news portal, and ran to a nearby field beside a river bank, refusing to return home.

Speaking at a press conference, Liucheng county public security political commissar Cai Tianlai said a total of 60 suspicious courier parcels had since been identified after reports from members of the public.

The suspicious parcels were being guarded, pending processing by a bomb squad, according to China News Service.