SHANTOU, Guangdong - Protests over a planned power plant in south Guangdong province entered the fourth day as hundreds of people gathered near an expressway toll gate on Friday.

About 500 villagers from the fishing township of Haimen in the city of Shantou gathered again at about 11:40 am, three days after the protest occurred on Tuesday.

The protest was triggered by a planned expansion of a coal-fired power plant by the Fengsheng Electricity Investment Company.

Villagers complained that the current power plant had led to a rise in the number of cancer patients, the deterioration of the environment, and a drop in fishing hauls.

The Shantou city government announced Tuesday evening, shortly after the protest, that the project would be suspended.

Some village residents said that they knew nothing about the announcement, while others said they had no trust in the suspension decision.