A gas explosion in Asturias leaves 17 injured, three of them seriously
Firefighters are searching for more victims trapped in the rubble of the building, which has now collapsed.
BarcelonaAt least 17 people were injured as a result of a strong gas explosion in a residential building in the Asturian town of Mieres, which collapsed, according to the Emergency Service of the Principality (SEPA). Three of the injured suffered serious injuries and were taken to a hospital in Oviedo, while firefighters and a canine unit are searching through the rubble to see if there are more people trapped. Among the less seriously affected are two minors, according to details in the local press.
The explosion occurred at around 4 pm on Monday in a block of flats on Ramón y Cajal street in the town and also caused flames in an adjoining building. Due to the shock wave, the collapsed building has become a pile of rubble, where search efforts are now concentrated in case there are more victims.
Local Police officers have asked residents of homes near the scene of the accident over a loudspeaker to return home and close their windows and shutters. The explosion could be heard in a large part of the Asturian city, located about 25 kilometres south of Oviedo.
Emergency services have treated seventeen people (eleven men and six women), ten of whom were treated at the hospital in Mieres and another two at the Valle del Nalón Hospital in Langreo. Two other people were discharged at the same place, and the three most seriously injured were transferred to the Central Hospital of Asturias, in Oviedo.
The Spanish government delegate in Asturias, Adriana Lastra, and the Minister of Health of the Principality, Concepción Saavedra, have gone to the scene to closely follow the rescue and tracking work. According to sources from the SEPA, they are now waiting for machinery to remove part of the debris so that the dogs of the canine unit can access it.
