ISTANBUL, Sept 14 — At least 25 people were injured, three seriously and two in potentially serious condition, after a gas explosion on Saturday in the Puente de Vallecas district of Madrid, Anadolu Ajansi (AA) reported citing Spanish daily El País.
The blast occurred at around 3 pm local time (1300GMT) and hit a commercial space converted into a residence, the building above it, and a neighbouring bar.
Carlos Marín de la Barcena, chief of the Madrid City Fire Department, confirmed it was a gas explosion.
However, the exact type of gas, the cause and the precise origin point have yet to be determined.
The building was evacuated. Madrid’s Deputy Mayor Inmaculada Sanz said residents of the nine apartments in the three-storey block may have to be relocated for several days due to “significant damage to the structural flooring between the ground and first floors.”
Sanz, who also heads the city’s Security and Emergencies, said the City Council is coordinating with Samur Social to provide temporary housing for affected residents. Municipal technicians will now conduct a full structural assessment.
Firefighters, working manually due to the instability of the structure which makes heavy machinery unsafe, rescued four people from beneath the rubble.
Sanz added that much of the debris had been cleared and it now “seems unlikely” that more people are trapped.
