At least four people have died in a blast near a Nigerian school, according to authorities.

According to police, an explosion near a primary school in Kano, northern Nigeria, killed at least four persons and destroyed a shop.

The intensity of the blast also blew a section of the school's roof off.

According to authorities, an inquiry is underway, but preliminary indications indicate that it was caused by a gas cylinder from a welding shop, ruling out an attack.

Emergency services and security forces raced to the area in Sabon Gari shortly after the incident.

There were no schoolchildren among the victims, according to police.

The explosion has created a great deal of anxiety and terror in the commercial center.

Kano is northern Nigeria's most populated metropolis.

It has been mostly spared from Boko Haram and its spinoff, the Islamic State West Africa Province, as well as armed kidnapping groups responsible for deadly bloodshed in the region for several years.

However, about a decade ago, Boko Haram carried off a major bombing at a mosque in the city, killing over 100 people.