At least 67 injured in Cuba fuel tank blast

Havana, Aug 6 (EFE).- At least 67 people were injured Saturday after a fuel storage tank exploded in western Cuba, authorities reported.

The explosion followed a fire that burned through the night after lightning hit another tank Friday evening.

Three people are in critical conditions and the injured are mostly members of the emergency teams working to extinguish the fire as well as two journalists, the Cuban government said, adding that 17 firefighters tackling the fire were missing.

The affected 50,000-cubic-meters deposits are located in an industrial area of the Matanzas province, near one of the country’s largest thermoelectric plants.

The blaze is still out of control and families in homes close to the affected industrial area are being evacuated over fear that the flames could spread.

The fire started on Friday around 7 pm local time (11 pm GMT) when an electrical discharge hit one of the eight crude tanks at Matanzas’ Supertanker Base, causing a fire that affected a fuel tank.

The fire seemed to be under control but strong wind hindered the extinction work and spread the flames to another two tanks. EFE

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