Emergency services reveals that a body was realized in central Johannesburg, South Africa, early Thursday, following a mysterious explosion that rocked a crowded street during rush hour last evening.
The powerful explosion tore a hole in the road and left behind deep gouges, causing chaos as pedestrians and cars were sent flying in different directions.
‘(In the) early hours of this morning, we managed to recover a body of a male person on site where the explosion occurred,’ Emergency Management Services spokesman Robert Mulaudzi said.
In a media briefing, Panyaza Lesufi, Johannesburg’s Gauteng province premier, reported that 48 individuals were injured in the incident.
Witnesses recounted smelling chemical odours and seeing vapours escape following the powerful blast, causing the overturning of vehicles, including minibus taxis.
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Lesufi reported that, based on the initial inspection, the cause of the explosion could not be determined.
Experts are ‘still searching for the source,’ he said.
A broad four-lane avenue, frequently utilized as a key commuting route for minibuses, was marked as the site of the explosion. This avenue is lined with high-rise buildings, home to apartments and street-level stores.
CCTV footage captured the harrowing scene as terrified individuals fled to safety in the aftermath of the blast.
Police kept the area closed on Thursday, shooing away onlookers who attempted to gather at the site.
‘It’s about keeping this scene sterile,’ said Elias Mawela, the provincial police commissioner. ‘Should we have a secondary explosion, then we may lose lives.’
At first, emergency services pointed to underground gas pipes as the cause of the blast, yet Egoli Gas, the city’s privatized gas company, contested this assertion, citing uninterrupted supplies to their customers.
Subsequently, the gas company issued an additional statement after their initial investigation, revealing that ‘one or two manhole covers’ had been forcefully blown off, and they observed a ‘white gas-like substance’ seeping out of these openings.
Reporters were informed by the city’s mayor that homeless individuals who often sleep rough on the pavements overnight in the area have been moved to temporary shelters.