Three people were killed and nine were injured in an explosion at garage in Wong Tai Sin yesterday at around 3:40pm.
Firefighters arrived on the scene five minutes after explosions as thick smoke were reported to be seeping from the garage, reports the SCMP.
The car repair shop is on the ground floor of a five-storey residential building on 52 Ngan Fung Street.
Witnesses say about 20 blasts were heard after the initial large explosion, which was so loud they thought a bomb had gone off.
Some of the explosions can be heard in a dramatic Apple Daily video viewable on their website.
The explosions were so powerful that several windows above were shattered, while seven nearby cars were damaged.
Debris was blown over 10 metres away from the garage, according to Apple Daily.
The three killed are the owner of the garage, aged 47, a taxi driver, aged 61, who had just dropped off his car for repair, and the 65-year-old owner of the glass shop next door to the garage.
Her husband, who sustained only minor cuts, had left the shop momentarily and had just returned when the explosion occurred.
A worker in the garage, aged 32, was critically injured, while another six men and two women aged between 23 and 85 also sustained injuries.
Firefighters used four jets and mobilised eight breathing apparatus teams to put out the blaze. The job was largely completed by 6:28pm, according to a government statement.
Because the building’s stairs had collapsed in the explosion, firefighters had to rescue some residents with a ladder.
The authorities evacuated 123 people, including 99 residents of an elderly care centre, from the neighbourhood.
Apple Daily says it is possible that the explosion was caused by a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) leak, which is what taxis run on.
The authorities are investigating the fire.
Photo: Apple Daily
