Restaurant damaged in gas cylinder blast
Manama : A gas cylinder leakage in a restaurant in downtown Manama ignited an inferno yesterday, causing an explosion leading to the collapse of the restaurant building. Several shops and cars parked on the premises were also damaged in the blast. No casualties were reported.
The disaster took place at around 7:00 am near Bab Al Bahrain when two gas cylinders kept in the restaurant exploded following the leakage.
“I was just walking towards my car on my way to the university when I heard the blast, just a block away from the site,” said a visibly upset student of the University of Bahrain whose car was completely damaged in the incident. The restaurant is run by a Bangladeshi woman, her husband and her brother.
“One of our neighbours informed me about the incident. Normally, I open the restaurant at around 7:00 am but today I slept a little longer. It’s just by God’s grace that nobody was hurt in the blast,” said Meeena who has been running the restaurant for the past 20 years.
Site inspected
Capital Governor, Shaikh Hisham bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa accompanied by Deputy Chief of Public Security inspected blast site. He thanked the Civil Defense and the Ministry of Interior for their prompt response.
“The restaurant inspection committee of the Capital Governorate had warned the restaurant against violation of safety rules on March 27, giving sufficient time to rectify the anomalies. The accident happened before the time period,” Shaikh Hisham said.
“As per the rules, gas cylinders should be kept out in an area with good ventilation and fix gas pipes and connections that meet the specifications. Gas cylinders should be maintained regularly, to avoid situations like these. In the future also the gas cylinders should be kept away from inflammable items and wastes. It is also important to fix gas detection devices available at shops that sell safety tools,” he added.
“We did warn the owners of the restaurant a few days ago not to leave the gas cylinder outside. It’s the negligence that caused the incident,” said Reyad Taher Al Mahroos, member of the Old Souq Committee, BCCI.
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