The death toll from a tanker truck explosion near Johannesburg on Saturday has risen further to 18, regional health officials said in a statement Monday.
Ten people died on Saturday when a truck filled with petrol got stuck in a tunnel near a hospital in Boksburg, some 40 kilometers east of Johannesburg. The accident “caused a leak and resulted in this massive explosion that caused significant damage” within a 500 meter radius, the statement said.
“Eight other people have since succumbed to their severe burns and injuries,” added the provincial health ministry. The latest report, released on Sunday, reported fifteen dead. Of the 18 dead, nine were working at Tambo Memorial Hospital, which was blown up with windows shattered and ceilings collapsed. The victims are a driver from the facility and eight nurses.
60,000 liters of liquid gas
A total of 37 people in the hospital, i.e. 24 patients in the emergency room and 13 nurses who were in the corridors and partly in the hospital parking lot, were badly burned, the text recalls. The hospital will remain closed until further notice.
South Africa: A tanker filled with gas exploded in Johannesburg on Saturday. 8 people were killed and several others injured. The blast shattered the roof of the emergency room at Tambo Memorial Hospital, destroying two homes and several cars.
#South African pic.twitter.com/0uHPPYCSGG— LSI AFRICA (@lsiafrica)
December 24, 2022
Amateur videos on social media showed a huge fireball exploding below deck, images worthy of a disaster movie. The tanker, probably too high to pass this place, was filled with 60,000 liters of liquefied petroleum gas.