A powerful explosion of gas pipeline followed by massive fire was reported near Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia, according to officials.
The Malaysian fire and rescue department (JBPM) confirmed in a brief declaration that the fire involved a gas pipeline, a canton of the state of Selangor. The authorities said they had received the report at 8:23 a.m. on Tuesday.
Several houses in neighboring residential areas have caught fire, although the exact number remains unknown. Officials also said that some people were trapped inside the houses and that rescue operations were underway.
The victims who were saved are taken to the temporary rescue center of the polytic room of the Putra Heights mosque. Several people have suffered burns and are waiting for medical treatment, the mosque staff helping on the spot at the arrival of ambulances.
Images circulating on social networks have shown an imposing ball of fire and thick black smoke rising in the sky, flames appearing to pull hundreds of feet in the air. The vertical column of intense orange flames can be erupted of what seems to be a densely populated urban area. Rows of houses and high -rise residential buildings were visible in the foreground.
While the first reports suggest that the explosion may have taken place in a service station, local emergency coordinates then said that the fire came from a gas pipeline belonging to Petronas near Petronas Putra Heights station in Subang Jaya. The authorities confirmed that the service station itself had not caught fire.
The affected pipeline has been closed and the stakeholders allow the remaining gas to burn before completely extinguishing the fire. Emergency services remain on the scene. The cause of the explosion has not yet been determined.