The tanker truck, which was carrying LPG, found itself stuck under a bridge in Boksburg. Forty people have been injured, half of which are in serious condition.
MO12345lemonde with AFP
At least ten people died and forty others were injured in the explosion of a gas tanker truck in Boksburg, east of Johannesburg, the emergency services announced on Saturday 24 December . The injured driver was hospitalized.
Early in the morning, the truck found itself stuck under a bridge, near a hospital and housing, in a residential area. “We received a call around 7:50 am. The firefighters left to turn off a fire. Unfortunately, the truck then exploded,” said France-Presse William Ntladi, spokesperson for services ‘Emergency of this area.
Amateur videos circulating on social networks show the explosion of a huge ball of fire under the bridge. The tanker was probably too high to go to this place.
It was filled with 60,000 liters of liquefied oil gas (LPG), used in particular for cooks, and arrived from the south-east of the country, added William Ntladi.
On the forty injured, half are in serious condition, 15 others are seriously affected but in a stable state while six firefighters were slightly injured, said the spokesman.