7 seriously injured in gas station explosion in Cambodia's capital: police

PHNOM PENH, Sept. 4 (Xinhua) -- Seven people were seriously injured in a gas station explosion in Sen Sok district in Phnom Penh, capital of Cambodia, a firefighting police chief said on Sunday.

The blast happened on Saturday afternoon at a gas depot, sparking a fire that spread across the street to some houses opposite, said Colonel Prohm Yorn, director of the Phnom Penh Municipal Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Office.

"Seven people, including the 69-year-old owner of the gas station, sustained serious injuries during the explosion and fire," he said in a report released to the media.

Several cars and motorcycles were also destroyed, and firefighters used 22 fire engines to put out the flames, Yorn said, adding that a gas leak was believed to be the cause of the blast as a further investigation was still underway to figure out what caused the gas to ignite.

Phnom Penh recorded 39 fire incidents during the January-May period of 2022, leaving one person dead and 14 others wounded, the Phnom Penh Municipal Fire Prevention and Rescue Police Office said, adding that 51 houses and a number of properties and belongings were also ruined.