No injuries are reported from a small explosion that went off outside a hotel in the Burmese capital, Rangoon, Friday.

Witnesses tell VOA the explosion damaged a signpost outside the luxury Traders Hotel around 6:30 p.m. local time.

Several vendors were in the area, but none of them was reported hurt. Security forces quickly sealed off the area and blocked street access as a crowd of onlookers gathered nearby.

Burma's tightly guarded capital has been rocked by a number of explosions in recent months.

Last May, several people were killed when Rangoon was hit by three almost simultaneous explosions.

The government blames exile dissident groups who oppose military rule. Some dissidents say the blasts are carried out by those with ties to the government in order to justify tighter security.