Fuel tanker explosion in Haiti, 16 killed, more than 40 injured

A fuel truck exploded in Haiti’s southern peninsula. At least 16 people have died and 40 people have suffered severe burns in this incident. An official said that a fuel truck exploded in Haiti on Saturday, killing at least 16 people and injuring 40 people. The bodies of the dead have been completely burnt, due to which they cannot even be identified.

Haiti’s Prime Minister Gary Conil said emergency teams were working to “save the lives of the seriously injured” following the incident, which occurred in the morning near the coastal town of Miragoane in the Nippes department. “The government stands in solidarity with all the victims and their families,” Conil said in a social media post.

People had arrived to collect fuel

A witness to the incident said that the gas tank of the truck was punctured by another vehicle. After this, people reached the spot to collect the fuel.

“There were a lot of people. Those who were close to the truck were blown to pieces,” the man, who did not give his name, said in a video interview with local outlet Echo Haiti Media. Asked how many people may have been killed in the blast, he said it was hard to say. “You can’t know, because there were a lot of people there, spectators and oil collectors. There were a lot of people,” he said.

Fuel delivery slowed down

Fuel deliveries to the Miragon region have slowed in recent weeks, with trucks being sent by boat to avoid gang-controlled highways around the capital of Port-au-Prince.

The proliferation of gangs in the capital and surrounding areas has fueled a humanitarian crisis, with mass displacement, sexual violence, child recruitment and widespread starvation. A state of emergency is now in effect across the country.

Haiti’s civil protection agency reported the identities of a 31-year-old man and two 23-year-old men who suffered burns over 89% of their bodies and were being treated at a hospital in Les Cayes in southern Haiti.

At the same time, in 2021, at least 60 people were killed in a similar incident in the city of Cap-Haitien, who were believed to be attempting to take fuel from a tanker truck.