Due to the explosion of a petrol and LPG gas station on Friday morning just after 8 a.m. on the Via Gordiani in the east of Rome, dozens of people were injured, including eight police officers and at least one firefighter. The other wounded were local residents or were nearby at that time. They mainly have light burns and injuries due to glass fragments.
The cause of the explosions is still unclear. According to the first reports it all started with a tank truck that had just finished unloading fuel at the gas station, reports La Republicca. The vehicle would have hit a management during a maneuver. That accident caused the first heavy explosion. Care providers immediately arrived on the spot and were hit by the second ten minutes later.
Video: huge explosions at the Rome gas station.
Local residents announced that they were shocked by a huge bang. “It sounded like a bomb, an attack,” Paola told the Italian news agency Ansa. “We didn’t understand anything, all windows were vibrating. It could have been an earthquake or a bomb, we didn’t understand. Then we saw the smoke and understood that it had been an explosion,” said local resident Francesco. A rescue worker said he had never seen anything like that. “It looked like a cloud with the shape of a mushroom,” he said. Now the damage to the buildings must be included. Parts of a roof have been driven away up to 300 meters.
First there was a gas smell, then there was an explosion, then a fire started. A powerful explosion followed. The latter could be heard in a large part of Rome. At the fire, a huge smoke and fire cloud rose above the gas station. Local residents first fled to the nearby sports center and then to the park.
Public Prosecution Service starts investigating circumstances explosion
In addition to a sports center, there is also a day care center nearby. Firefighters, National and Municipal Police, Carabinieri and volunteers of the civil protection came to help. Even extra fire teams were pulled out from other municipalities. There were also seven ambulances. The wounded were taken to different hospitals. The police immediately deposited roads in the area and evacuated fifteen children from a nearby summer camp. They are all brought to safety. Two buildings near the gas station have also been evacuated. The head of the borough, Mauro Caliste, made a call to the people not to come out of curiosity to the explosion.
The fire brigade saved around forty people who were stuck when the fire approached their homes. The cause of the fire and the explosion is still being sought. It may happen during refueling a tank truck. There were also reports that the fire brigade had been called after a truck had been held against a pipeline. When the fire brigade arrived, the explosion took place.
Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is in direct contact with Mayor Roberto Galtieri van Rome. On social media, Meloni says: “I express my condolences to all injuries, including members of the order services, firefighters and caregivers, and express my sincere thanks to all who are involved in the rescue actions and the security of the situation.”
Pope Leo XIV has also responded to X. “I pray for the people involved in the explosion of a petrol station in Prenestino, in the heart of my diocese. With concern I continue to follow the developments of this tragic incident.”
