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At least 30 people have been killed in an explosion at a petrol station in Russian city of Dagestan in the Caucasus, local officials said on Tuesday.
Another 75 people were injured in the blast in Dagestan’s capital, Makhachkala, the state news agency TASS reported, citing the Russian Ministry of Emergency Management.
The authority had initially spoken of 27 dead. The search for victims and clearing of debris was ongoing, it said.
“As of 6:00 a.m. local time (3:00 a.m. GMT) on August 15, the tragedy killed 27 people and left 102 injured,” said Sergey Mekilov, head of the Dagestan Region.
According to the regional head, there are three children among those killed.
The Russian Emergencies Ministry said earlier that the gas station blast in Makhachkala had killed 27 and left 75 injured. Efforts continue to clear the rubble and search for potential survivors. Search-and-rescue dog teams are working at the site. In addition, the Emergencies Ministry’s Il-76 aircraft has departed from Moscow’s Zhukovsky Airport to airlift the injured to the hospital.
An investigation has been launched into the explosion which occurred on Monday evening.
It is thought that a disregard for safety regulations may have caused the fireball.