Four people killed after fire tears through South Korean shopping centre

Four people were killed and more than 40 others injured after fire erupted at a shopping centre in South Kore, authorities have said.

Police suspect that sparks from a welding torch might have started the fire on Saturday (local time) in a kids' play area in the mall in Dongtan, a commuter town south of Seoul.

Two of the four people who died were builders and the others were a mall worker and a shopper.

Most of the 47 people injured complained of smoke inhalation. 

The play area was closed at the time of the fire.

Fire authorities urged builders to follow safety regulations, noting that welding torches were blamed for past blazes.

Previous incidents include a December 2008 warehouse fire in the eastern city of Icheon that claimed eight lives and a shopping mall blaze at a bus terminal in Koyang, north of Seoul, which killed nine and injured 60.