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Nashville (AP) - At least three people were slightly injured in a violent explosion in downtown Nashville in the US state of Tennessee.
They were taken to hospitals, said a spokesman for the rescue workers on Friday.
According to initial findings, investigators assume a deliberate act, as a police spokesman said.
According to the police, the explosion came from a vehicle.
Local media spoke of a trailer.
FBI officials have also started an investigation.
According to authorities, the explosion caused major property damage.
Pictures from the local television station WKRN showed damaged houses and debris lying on the street.
The footage also showed broken windows in buildings further away from the explosion.
The police cordoned off the city center to a large extent.
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Mayor John Cooper said on Twitter that the exact cause of the explosion is now being investigated by police and federal forces.
"It looks like a bomb has exploded," Cooper said in a statement transmitted by WKRN.
Dozens of users in social networks had taken photos and videos of black smoke over the city center after the explosion at around 6:30 a.m. (local time).
Initially, several sources of fire could be seen.
Reporters from broadcaster WKRN said they felt the shock of the explosion in their downtown studio.
The mayor and emergency services wanted to provide more details during the day.
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With almost 700,000 inhabitants, Nashville is the capital of the state of Tennessee in the southern United States.
Because of its many live music bars and record labels, it is considered the center of country music and is also called "Music City".
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 201225-99-812251 / 7
WKRN
Tweet from the Mayor, English