An accident with several explosions at a gas station in southern Russia causes at least 35 deaths

A tragic chain of explosions in a workshop and a gas station has resulted in more than three dozen deaths and almost a hundred injured in the Russian region of Dagestan. The shock waves have not only destroyed the service station, but have also hit a hotel and dozens of other homes. This Russian republic, one of the poorest provinces and also one of the main recruiting grounds for the invasion of Ukraine, lives pending a drama that could escalate in the coming hours due to the critical condition of several victims.

The last part provided by the local authorities on Tuesday noon stated that at least 35 people lost their lives in the disaster and another 80 more had been injured. Of these, 65 victims had been hospitalized, 11 in serious condition.

The event occurred on Monday night in the Novokuli settlement, on the outskirts of Makhachkala, the capital of this Caucasus region. The cause of the tragedy has not yet been determined, but the indications point to the first explosion of a gas cylinder in a car workshop located next to the gas station and this caused the deflagration of two of the eight fuel tanks from the service station.

The governor of the region, Sergei Mélikov, has held the workshop workers responsible. “I think that first of all there is greed and greed. That moment in which people try to bypass all security measures to obtain a small benefit”, he stated during a meeting in which he criticized the fact that the establishment where the first explosion occurred and the gas station were “just five meters from distance”.

“Working in a workshop involves welding and sparks, and the service station involves storing flammable liquids and gases,” Mélikov stressed during the extract from the meeting published by his government.

Join EL PAÍS to follow all the news and read without limits.

subscribe

The owner of the workshop, Ruslán Saidajmétov, has been one of the victims of the incident. According to the Mash news channel, he has suffered head and chest injuries. The outlet adds that Saidajmétov would have rented the premises to another person, Eldar Nasruliyev, who, according to his sources, stored around a hundred kilos of fertilizers made up of nitrates there, being a highly volatile substance.

The Dagestani Prosecutor’s Office has ordered an investigation into the legality of the facilities and the Investigative Committee, a body that assumes functions of the police and the prosecutor’s office, has opened a criminal case under the alleged crime of providing services that do not meet the requirements to guarantee the life and health of consumers.

A correspondent for the TASS news agency has explained that the explosion was heard in Makhachkala. Some 40 homes were damaged and, on social networks such as Telegram, images of glass and other fragments found inside houses located more than 150 meters away have been published. According to the authorities, no excessive pollution levels have been detected in the air.

The regional authorities have promised compensation of one million rubles, just over 10,000 euros, to the families of the victims, and have declared a day of mourning in the republic, still pending the evolution of those most affected. At least 16 children have been injured in the event. The Russian Emergencies Ministry sent an Il-76 transport plane to the scene to transfer the most seriously injured to better-prepared hospitals.

The Kremlin has published a brief statement of mourning for the victims. “Vladímir Putin has expressed his sincere condolences to the families and friends of those who died in the explosion at a gas station in Makhachkala, and has wished the victims a speedy recovery,” says the presidential message.

Follow all the international information on Facebook and Twitteror in our weekly newsletter.

Subscribe to continue reading

Read without limits

#accident #explosions #gas #station #southern #Russia #deaths