Explosion in Douala brings down ten houses

A gas explosion in Douala has reportedly damaged ten houses in the vicinity.

The incident occurred Wednesday April 29,2015 afternoon in the New Bell District, Douala.

According to sources, the flames which started around 4 pm has completely consumed ten homes.

Residents testified to the fact that they heard a gas explosion, and was followed by explosions of about 50 others. Particles were found in more than 300 m from the site.

Residents accused the owner of setting up a gas station in an unauthorised area. The gas station, however has been in existence for more than thirty years. The tank and the multitude of drums present on the site, found by fire-fighters and police are indicative of how booming the business was.

According to security sources, the owner has been arrested and is currently at the Office of the Commissioner of the 6th District of Douala.

Illicit gas stations are common in Cameroon are known to cause havoc from time to time. It can be recalled that on November 23, 2014, a similar explosion took place at a secret gas station at Etoudi in Yaoundé.

Two main lines of high voltage electric transmission were affected, depriving many families of electricity for several days.

The Commerce Minister had condemned these unauthorised factories and announced a vast campaign of repression of such activities throughout the nation.

The New Bell at Douala incident indicated that officials of the Ministry of Commerce have not raked, and several other secret deposits still abound in the sub-districts.