At least 35 people were killed, including three children, and another 80 were injured in the explosion that went off last night at a gas station on the outskirts of Makhachkala, the capital of the Russian republic of Dagestan, a Russian republic in the Caucasus neighboring Chechnya. according to the latest data provided this Tuesday by local authorities.
The head of Dagestan, Sergei Melnikov, today decreed mourning throughout the North Caucasian republic. And the Dagestani government announced that it will materially assist the relatives of the deceased with aid of one million rubles, about 9,600 euros, while the wounded will receive 400,000 rubles, about 3,800 euros.
According to the Investigation Committee, the fire that caused the explosion at the gas station originated in an automobile repair shop adjoining it. According to the Dagestan Interior Ministry, two of the eight fuel tanks at the gas station blew up, leaving a huge crater in the ground.
“Everything around us was on fire (…), we couldn’t see anything,” one of the injured told Russian television channel Ren-TV, as doctors attended to his head wound.
The authorities initiated criminal proceedings for rendering services without respecting security measures. “The causes of the tragedy are being clarified,” Dagestan leader Sergei Melikov said on Telegram, expressing his “deep condolences” to the families of the victims and praising the “heroic acts” of the rescuers who, according to him, helped prevent further death toll.
According to Melikov, the explosion occurred shortly before 10 p.m. at a gas station near the town of Novokouli, in the Caspian Sea suburb of Makhachkala. According to investigators, a fire broke out during maintenance work on the car, followed by a detonation that started a much larger fire, damaging surrounding buildings and vehicles.
A few hours later, the fire, which spread over approximately 600 m2 and mobilized 260 firefighters, was extinguished, according to the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations.
