Nine people died and forty others injured in the explosion of a gas tanker in Boksburg, about forty kilometers east of Johannesburg (South Africa), we learned on Saturday from the services emergency.
Early in the morning, the truck got stuck under a bridge, near a hospital and homes.
“We received a call around 7:50 a.m.
The firefighters left to put out the beginning of the fire.
Unfortunately, the truck then exploded,” William Ntladi, spokesman for the emergency services in this area, told AFP.
Filled with 60,000 liters of LPG gas
Amateur videos circulating on social media show a huge fireball exploding below the bridge.
The tank truck was probably too high to pass through this place.
It was filled with 60,000 liters of LPG gas, used in particular for ovens and cookers, and arrived from the south-east of the country, added the spokesperson, adding that its injured driver was hospitalized.
Of the 40 injured, 19 are in serious condition, 15 others are seriously affected but in stable condition, while six firefighters were slightly injured, the spokesman said.
Miscellaneous facts
An explosion in a building leads to the evacuation of several families, in Saint-Ouen
World
Jersey blast: No survivors under the rubble, say rescuers
World
South Africa
johannesburg
Truck
Blast
Gas