A MASSIVE gas explosion has ripped through a bar in Madrid’s Vallecas district, leaving 25 people injured and forcing residents to flee their homes as the building partially collapsed.
Video captured the aftermath of the blast, which tore through the Mis Tesoros establishment on Calle Manuel Maroto yesterday evening.
Emergency services describing ‘shocking scenes’ of destruction as three people remain in serious condition
The explosion has been blamed on a dangerous build up of gases, has left the entire building partially collapsed and structurally unstable, with evacuated residents now facing a night in emergency accommodation.
“We’re left without a home. The staircase is smashed, the doors, the windows, everything,” said one distraught resident who was inside her flat when the blast struck.
The force of the explosion damaged an area of approximately 50-60 square metres of the concrete and steel structure, sending debris flying and shattering windows throughout the neighbourhood.
Carlos Marin, Madrid’s chief fire officer, confirmed that seventeen fire brigade units raced to the scene to clear rubble and assess the damage to the building, which houses both the popular local bar and residential flats above.
“The building is currently unstable. We cannot allow any work to proceed until technicians assess the level of instability and determine what structural consolidation is needed,” emergency authorities warned.
Emergency services treated the 25 casualties at the scene, with the three most seriously injured rushed to hospital.
Social services have been deployed to find alternative accommodation for residents who cannot return to their homes.
Madrid City Council sources say it is still too early to fully assess the extent of structural damage to the building.
Urban planning technicians will carry out a comprehensive inspection once the immediate emergency response is completed.
The incident has sent shockwaves through the working-class Vallecas district, located in Madrid’s southeastern suburbs, where the local bar was a popular community gathering spot.
Authorities have cordoned off the area while investigations continue into exactly what caused the dangerous gas build-up that led to the devastating explosion.
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