Video: the shocking explosion on a street in South Africa that left one dead and 48 injured

An underground gas pipeline burst in Johannesburg for causes that are still under investigation.

The authorities of Johannesburg, one of the most important cities in South Africa, confirmed this Thursday that there was one death and almost 50 injuries as a result of the explosion of a gas pipe that passed under a street.

The shocking sequence was recorded by a security camera in the area and the video soon went viral on social networks. In the images you can see a strong and powerful explosion that breaks the asphalt and makes the cars fly against the sidewalk.

Regarding the explosion, the exact trigger is not yet known, although the authorities are investigating three main hypotheses.

“Three possible causes have been identified for the explosion of a pipe in a street, which has left at least one dead and 48 injured,” South African government sources explained to the DPA news agency.

The shocking explosion on a street in South Africa that left one dead and 48 injured. Photo: REUTERS/Shafiek Tassiem

For his part, the municipal administrator, Floyd Brink, reported that the accident could have been due to “the ignition of methane gas in underground stormwater systems due to the entry of wastewater.”

Two other possibilities are related to “ignition of natural gas mixed with oxygen in underground stormwater drainage systems or service lines” and “ignition of gas from a ruptured gas pipeline.”

The head of the Gauteng province, Panyaza Lesufi, specified that all private and public companies with infrastructure in the city have been called to review their systems to trace the origin of the incident.

The explosion left one dead and 48 injured. Photo: EFE/EPA/KIM LUDBROOK

According to the South African newspaper News24, one of the first measures taken was the closure of the streets adjacent to the scene and the evacuation of the residents of the area, some of whom had difficulty breathing and headaches and chest pains.

The blast left a “big hole” in the street and sidewalk, into which some people fell, and damaged a large number of vehicles. After the assistance of those affected, one of them died and another 48 suffered serious injuries.

With information from Telam.