Huge blast rips through gas station in Russian city of Volgograd, injuring at least 13
'The firefighters were literally scattered by a blast wave'
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}At least 13 people are injured following an explosion sparked by a fire at a gas station in Volgograd, Russia, with 10 of the victims being rushed to the hospital, according to local media reports.
Footage of the blast, shared widely on social media, shows an enormous fireball shooting into the sky.
According to Russia's emergencies ministry, victims in the explosion included firefighters responding to an initial blaze at the station at around 12:40 p.m. local time (8:40 a.m. GMT).
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Russian Emergencies Ministry employees battle a fire at a filling station in Traktorozavodsky District. Video screen grab. (Photo by EmercomTASS via Getty Images)
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“The firefighters were literally scattered by a blast wave,” Vladislav Kopyev, head of the region’s 1st fire and rescue unit, was quoted by the ministry as saying.
The fire was believed to have been sparked by a discharge of static electricity as fuel was pumped from a tanker to an underground storage tank.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Staff was able evacuate the station before the explosion caused a larger blaze, which spread over 1,000 square meters.
A view of a fire at a filling station, which caused a gas tank explosion, in Traktorozavodsky District. Video screen grab. (Photo by EmercomTASS via Getty Images)
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“Feeling the blast wave, I fell to the ground," one of the fireighters in attendance, Maxim Chertovy, told The Independent. "Looking up, I saw the gas station blazing, and the flames rise several meters in height.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Seventy firefighters, along with a firefighting robot, were able to extinguish the fire.
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The news comes less than a week after a deadly blast that occurred in Beirut on Aug. 4, which has killed at least 220 people as of Sunday.