Death toll from South Africa tanker explosion jumps to 27

JOHANNESBURG, (Reuters) – The death toll from the explosion of a tanker in Johannesburg on Christmas Eve has risen to 27, according to the provincial health department.

The blast that occurred in Boksburg, a suburb of the city, on Saturday tore off the roof of the Tambo Memorial hospital’s emergency department. It also destroyed several cars and left many people injured up to 500m away.

“The Boksburg explosion killed 27 people, according to the department of health,” the department of Health said. The Gauteng Department of Health released a statement saying that 10 of those killed were health workers from Tambo Memorial Hospital.

Although 18 people had been reported dead by authorities, the actual number is expected to rise due to the severity of the burns caused by the blast.

According to local media, the truck driver who was previously arrested under suspicion of culpable killing was released on Wednesday because of lack of evidence.

President Cyril Ramaphosa offered support to those affected by the blast, and indicated that authorities were investigating.

(Reporting by Bhargav Acharya; Editing by Elaine Hardcastle