One person died and 57 were injured this Saturday night after two explosions at an unlicensed gas station north of Bucharest, Romania’s capital.
Most of the injured were firefighters who went to the station to put out the fire from the first explosion before the second occurred.
The injured – some with severe burns – include 39 firefighters, two police officers and two soldiers, Raed Arafat, head of the emergency service, said on Sunday.
“During the night, we transferred two firefighters and two civilians abroad (for treatment) and others will follow,” Arafat said in a statement.
According to the Ministry of Defense, the four have been transferred to Italy or Belgium.
It was not immediately clear what caused the explosions in Crevedia, a community of villages, and prosecutors have opened an investigation.
“We know that the station was no longer in operation, so it was clearly not authorized to operate”said Arafat.
The fire also forced the evacuation of people within a 700m radius.
“I am deeply saddened that the explosions in Crevedia claimed victims,” President Klaus Iohannis wrote on Facebook, calling it a “tragedy”.
The EU member state has repeatedly struggled with a lack of official supervision of compliance with safety regulations.
In 2015, a fire destroyed a nightclub in Bucharest after fireworks were set off, killing 64 people.
Source: DN
