Emergency workers walk at the site of a gas explosion in the town of Noginsk, Moscow, Russia, on Wednesday. Reuters

A gas explosion on Wednesday in a nine-storey block of flats in a city near the Russian capital killed two people and damaged apartments, a law enforcement agency said.

Big holes in the outer walls of the building in Noginsk city, 50km (31 miles) east of Moscow, could be seen in video footage. Debris was strewn on the ground.

"According to preliminary data, five people were injured and two have died — a man and a woman," Interfax news agency cited a regional branch of the Investigative Committee as saying, according to Reuters.

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Rescue workers found that walls had collapsed on three of the building's floors, the local emergencies ministry said.

This view shows a scene of a gas explosion in the town of Noginsk, Moscow region, Russia, on Wednesday. Reuters

It said five of the building's 73 apartments were damaged and that 173 residents had been evacuated. Russian news agencies reported earlier that two children were among the injured.