<span style="color: #222222;">The death toll in a gas explosion that hit a residential house in the Russian city of Magnitogorsk has risen to 21. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">A spokesperson for the Russian Emergencies Ministry today said about 20 people are still missing and six people have been rescued at the scene so far. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">On Monday, a natural gas blast hit one of the blocks of a 10-storey residential building in Magnitogorsk, destroying and damaging scores of apartments. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">Rescue works continue, while they are hindered by the risk of debris collapsing. A criminal investigation into the accident has been opened, for suspected criminal negligence.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">In an apparently unrelated incident, an explosion destroyed a minibus near the apartment block last night, killing three people. Investigators say the vehicle was carrying two gas canisters.</span><br />