Chaos in Manhattan: 19 injured in gas explosion, four seriously

Nineteen people were injured, four of them seriously, on Thursday after an explosion likely caused by gas that brought down three buildings and sparked a large fire in central New York, reports the Patria news agency.

 

Among the injured, two people suffered severe burns to their airways and one was thrown by the initial explosion.

Five hours after the fire started, more than 200 firefighters were still battling the blaze that engulfed shops and apartments in the East Village neighborhood of Manhattan.

A fire department spokeswoman said that two buildings - at 121 Second Avenue, the site of the first explosion, and the building next door, as well as the building at 123 of the same avenue - had completely collapsed. A fourth building was heavily damaged in the ensuing fire.

According to New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, the first explosion was caused by work on water and gas pipes in that avenue, in front of the aforementioned buildings.

The Red Cross organized emergency accommodation in a nearby school for residents of the collapsed buildings.

The East Village is one of the favorite neighborhoods of artists and wealthy New Yorkers. It contains numerous shops, bars and restaurants.

Last year, eight people died in a fire caused by a gas leak explosion in New York's Harlem neighborhood.