Four people have been injured following an explosion at a building in Tokyo, Japanese media reported.

Footage showed flames and smoke coming from the shattered windows on the second floor of a building in the Shimbashi area of the capital.

Witnesses reported smelling gas prior to hearing an explosion, according to national television station NHK.

The fire service was quoted by NHK as saying four people had been injured.

Individuals were pictured being carried away from the scene.

Police cornered off the area while the fire service used hoses to put out the fire.

The scale of the damage appeared limited, and the fire had not spread.

The cause of the fire remains unknown.

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