Nine killed in South Africa after gas tanker explodes
The Hindu
Several people were airlifted to hospitals for treatment.
At least nine people, including two fire-fighters, were killed and many others injured after a gas tanker which got stuck under a low railway bridge exploded in Boksburg town of South Africa on Saturday, officials said.
Ekurhuleni Emergency Management Services (EMS) spokesperson William Ntladi said a hospital was also damaged in the incident.
He confirmed that nine people, including two firemen, were killed, adding that six fire-fighters have been hospitalised.
According to eyewitnesses, the gas tanker exploded as the firefighters were trying to extinguish a small fire that resulted after the tanker got stuck inside the low bridge. They also recounted to local media how people seated on the grass outside the hospital adjacent to the site of the explosion suffered third-degree burns.
Several people were airlifted to hospitals for treatment.
Officials have not yet given the exact number of injured in the explosion.
Meanwhile, family members rushed to hospitals to check on their dear ones after seeing social media reports of the incident, but were not allowed in as forensic experts combed the area.