Firefighters managed to contain the blaze after shutting off the gas line, police said. (Representative)
Basra:
At least three people have been killed and more than 50 injured in a gas pipeline explosion in southern Iraq, police sources said on Saturday.
The military said in a statement that the cause of the explosion was not known. He said nine Shiite militia fighters were among the wounded and two children were killed.
Police sources said the explosion near the southern city of Samawa, 270 km (170 miles) south of Baghdad, occurred along a stretch of pipeline that passes near a militiamen. Gas officials said the pipe had seen leaks in the past.
Firefighters managed to contain the blaze after shutting off the gas line, police said.
The petroleum ministry said in a statement it had sent technical teams to repair the damaged section. Gas flows would resume in the “next few hours” via an alternative pipeline, to avoid power plant supply shortages.
An investigation has been opened to determine the cause of the explosion, according to the statement quoted by Deputy Oil Minister Hamid Younis.
Iraqi energy officials said the domestic line was carrying gas from some of the southern fields to power power plants in some southern cities and a key power plant near Baghdad.
The explosion has no effect on gas production and processing operations in Iraq, two gas officials said.
(Except for the title, this story was not edited by GalacticGaming staff and is posted from a syndicated feed.)
