At least one person has died and over 50 have been injured in a gas explosion outside Bucharest.
Several of the injured are supposed to be firefighters and the death toll is expected to rise.
– We are trying to save as many as we can, said the country’s Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu during the night.
Late Saturday evening, two explosions occurred at a gas station outside the Romanian capital, Bucharest.
After an initial explosion, the fire spread to two gas containers and a house nearby. As firefighters tried to put out the fire, a second explosion occurred. 26 firefighters were injured, for one of them the condition is life-threatening, reports Radio Free Europe.
Several other people have serious injuries. The death toll is feared to rise, according to Health Minister Alexandru Rafila.
– Some of the injured will be transferred to Italy and Belgium. We are trying to save as many as we can, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said during the night.
The EU deploys civil protection
Residents within a radius of 750 meters have been evacuated and traffic has been blocked, according to the head of the rescue agency, Raed Arafat, to whom AP refers. During the evening there was still a risk that a third gas container would explode.
Footage on social media shows the fire spreading to a nearby field where it devoured dry crops. Several houses and vehicles around have been destroyed by the fire.
A large rescue team was sent to the scene. The cause of the explosions is unknown.
The EU’s civil protection has been deployed to prevent and reduce the consequences of the explosion.