The Dominican relief authorities reported that 11 people died in the explosion and subsequent fire that occurred Monday night in the center of the city of San Cristobalabout 30 kilometers southwest of Santo Domingo.
The director of the Emergency Operations Center (COE), Juan Manuel Mendezassured in a press conference that the number of deceased will increase, because parts of charred bodies have been found, in addition to the fact that there are 59 people injured and 10 missing.
The lifeguard assured that there are still four active fire sources and that two firefighters have been affected by smoke inhalation.
An important commercial area of San Cristóbal was affected by the explosion and subsequent fire
The authorities still do not know the causes of the powerful explosion that occurred in a commercial area of the city of San Cristobal. More than 1,500 people worked in the rescue and combat work of the accident.
“The priority is to save lives and attend to the families of the victims, to then give way to the investigations – which have already begun – to determine the origin of this tragedy,” he considered. mendez.
The Dominican Government has incorporated intelligence personnel from the Armed forces to clarify the causes of the explosion and subsequent fire, expressed hours before the Dominican president, Luis Abinaderwho visited the place.
Several commercial establishments were operating in the area of the accident at the time of the explosion, which also destroyed several cars and caused damage to neighboring homes and businesses.
“Work is being done to identify other corpses, because at the time this press conference began we were informed that parts of charred bodies have been recovered,” he said. mendez.
Several of the injured have been transferred to specialized centers in the Dominican capital. National and municipal authorities assured that they have provided psychological support to the families of those affected.
