But this time, no military devices were involved. The spectacular fire was the result of a short circuit at a petrol station in Catembe, the municipal district that faces downtown Maputo across the bay.
According to workers at the petrol station the accident happened at about 18.30, as a tanker truck was refilling the fuel deposits. A short circuit in the electric pumping mechanism gave off a spark which set alight a trickle of petrol on the ground, and soon the whole filling station, owned by the company Total, was ablaze.
The flames devoured the deposits of petrol, diesel and kerosene, and spread to bottle of cooking gas stored up nearby. For more than 15 minutes these were exploding like giant firecrackers.
The driver of the tanker truck was able to drive his vehicle out of danger, thus ensuring that it too did not go up in flames. Three motor bikes parked at the station, and the entire physical structure of the building were destroyed. Four people were injured, but there are no reports of any fatalities.
The fire brigade had to ferry its equipment across the bay and so did not arrive until about 19.30. The firemen successfully stopped the blaze from spreading to nearby buildings, and the 14,000 litres their two vehicles were carrying proved sufficient to extinguish the fire.
"Our capacity to respond was enough to bring the fire under control", said fire brigade commander Yacoub Shomar. Fire fighting equipment from Maputo International airport arrived later - only to find that the fire was already out.
Interior Minister Jose Pacheco visited the scene of the fire and advised owners of filling stations to equip their establishments with more effective fire fighting equipment, so as to avoid any repetition.
SOURCE: AIM
