Key points
- Early morning blaze coming under control: officials
- About 60 of the injured hospitalised
- No deaths reported
- Around 50 houses affected by the blaze
ISLAMABAD: A massive fire caused by a gas pipeline leak forced people from their homes and injured more than 100 during Eid celebrations near Malaysia’s capital on Tuesday, fire officials said.
The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for miles and lasted for several hours.
National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10 am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the valves will eventually snuff out the fire, according to CNN.
The flames, 20 stories high at one point, were small enough for firefighters to approach around 2:45 pm, the Selangor state fire department told the Star newspaper.
Valve shut off
Officials in Selangor state near Kuala Lumpur said the valve to the affected pipeline has been shut off.
While the early morning blaze was coming under control in the afternoon, more than 100 people were injured, the fire department told AFP.
About 60 of the injured were hospitalised, Selangor deputy police chief Mohamad Zaini Abu Hassan was quoted as saying by local broadcaster Astro Awani.
No deaths were reported but about 50 houses were affected by the blaze, the fire department said.
Eid holidays
Residents were enjoying a public holiday for Eid celebrations in Muslim-majority Malaysia when they were forced to flee the suburban area.
Nizam Mohamad Asnizam, 49, who lives 100 metres from the site of the fire, fled from his house with his family in his car.
“When I woke up, I saw the fire raging, with an extraordinary sound. I have never experienced a fire with this kind of sound. The sound was terrifying. It felt like a jet engine was next to me,” he told AFP.
“Stepping on the floor was like stepping on a hot wok. The heat was like putting your head in an oven, it felt like I was burning.”
Dashcam footage shared online showed a column of fire from what appears to be an explosion, creating a massive fireball that shot into the sky, AFP reported.
Melted cars
Another video shared online showed a residential area covered in smoke while a huge fire blazed in the background. Singed trees and melted cars are also seen in the video.
Selangor Chief Minister Amirudin Shari said in a Facebook post that a temporary relief centre had been set up at a nearby mosque.
He warned the public to stay away from the area affected by the fire while investigations and rescue work were being carried out.
