The blast happened at about 9 a.m. in the Beiteng neighbourhood of the city's Doumen district near Tenghu Hotel.
According to The Standard, which quoted a statement by the district's Public Security Bureau (PSB), the blast damaged "many" residential buildings and shops in the area.
The ground floor and second floor of the hotel were also badly damaged, and the smoke continued to billow for some time in the area, the report said.
Weibo footage showed the hotel lobby as well as some nearby shops bursting into flames, with smoke billowing into the sky, The Standard said.A number of residential homes and businesses in the vicinity, along with several vehicles, were damaged, RTHK reported.
Authorities said at least three people were taken to hospital. One of them suffered burns while the other two suffered minor injuries, according to the public broadcaster.
According to The Standard, 55 firefighters and 11 trucks, plus medical personnel and emergency officials were sent to the scene. The blaze was put out in about an hour, the newspaper said.
The Standard also said that the blast resulted in a heavy traffic jam. Traffic police closed the nearby roads to make way for firefighters and rescue personnel.
Doumen, which covers 613 square kilometres, has a population of about 420,000. Doumen lies some 25 kilometres west of Macau.
