An explosion at a gas station in Dagestan, a Russian republic in the Caucasus, killed at least 30 people and injured 75 on Monday evening.
Dagestan governor Sergei Melikov confirmed the death toll and said three of the dead were children.
“A total of 105 people were injured as a result of the incident at the gas station, 30 of whom died,” Russia’s Emergency Situations Ministry said on Tuesday. on the Telegram messaging platform.
in #Makhachkala, #Dagestan there was a powerful explosion near an oil depot
Eyewitnesses report that the blast wave was very strong and could be felt in apartments and houses.
The preliminary cause of the explosion is an exploding gas bottle at a gas station. At least eight people… pic.twitter.com/lnv7kAKTdr
– NEXTA (@nexta_tv) August 14, 2023
27 people died and 102 were injured as a result of the explosion #Makhachkalasaid the head of #Dagestan Sergey Melikov. pic.twitter.com/tuVLOOOl09
– NEXTA (@nexta_tv) August 15, 2023
An initial assessment made by the ministry this morning showed 12 dead and more than 60 injured.
An Il-76 medical plane has been sent by Russian authorities to the Dagestan capital Makhachkala to transport the seriously injured to the capital Moscow for treatment, the ministry said.
The fire on the outskirts of Makhachkala, located on the Caspian Sea, covered an area of about 600 square meters, according to the Emergency Situations Ministry.
The same source added that 260 firefighters battled the flames, which have since been extinguished.
The fire started in a mechanical workshop, where cars were parked, and spread to the gas pump, RIA Novosti said, citing the ministry.
According to the Dagestan Ministry of Interior, two of the station’s eight fuel tanks exploded.
“After the explosion, everything fell on our heads, we couldn’t see anything,” said an unnamed witness quoted by the Russian daily Izvestia.
The moment of the explosion #Makhachkala. pic.twitter.com/1KqMrJmdQi
– NEXTA (@nexta_tv) August 14, 2023
A video posted to Telegram by RIA Novosti shows flames bursting from a building followed by a massive explosion, which created a deep crater.
Russian authorities have announced the opening of a criminal investigation into the incident.
Families of the fatalities will each receive 1 million rubles (about 9,500 euros), the Dagestani authorities said, and the injured between 200,000 and 400,000 rubles (between 1,900 and 3,700 euros).
The Russian republic in the Caucasus, bordering Chechnya and bordering Georgia and Azerbaijan, has declared a day of mourning today.
Also on Monday night, another explosion, at an oil exploration in the Khanty-Mansiysk region, in western Siberia, killed two people and injured five people, local authorities said.
Source: DN
