Dilip Kuner
ONE person has died and four injured – one critically – in an explosion at Barcelona port.
The incident occurred at approximately 10.10am this morning (January 21) at the Moll d’Energia dock.
The blast took place at the facilities of Tepsa, a company specialising in the storage and shipping of bulk liquid products.
According to Sebastia Massague, the head of Barcelona’s fire service, the explosion involved a tank containing methyl acetate, a highly flammable substance.
- READ MORE:
- Spain’s Pedro Sanchez is compared to dictator Franco amid row over his ‘fake news’ crackdown
- Barcelona based newspaper La Vanguardia joins UK’s The Guardian in leaving Elon Musk’s X after US election win for Trump
The critically injured victim has been transferred to Vall d’Hebron hospital with severe burns.
Olga Villena, the deputy regional head of the Emergency Medical System (SEM) in Barcelona, confirmed that the number of casualties is not expected to increase.
In response to the incident, authorities activated the port’s emergency protocol and the Plaseqcat chemical warning system.
Despite the severity of the explosion, port officials have assured that there is no ongoing danger, and regular activities at the port continue as usual.
The victims were reportedly employees of a subcontracted company performing maintenance work on the tank. Massague added that welding work was being carried out on the methyl acetate tank at the time of the explosion.
Firefighters have successfully extinguished the fire caused by the blast, but a security perimeter remains in place as investigations continue.
Initially, nearby companies kept workers indoors as a precautionary measure, but they have since been allowed to leave.
The Guardia Civil has deployed several patrols to the port and will be leading the investigation into the causes of the accident.
The Barcelona Fire Department sent 11 units to the scene, accompanied by firefighters from the Generalitat and 10 units from the Emergency Medical System.
