About 40 Hurt in Prague Explosion

PRAGUE—A powerful explosion of a leaky gas pipe has caused significant damage of a building in a busy section of downtown Prague, shattering windows in the immediate area and injuring some 40 people, police said Monday.

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Reuters

Firefighters and police officers searched the area after an explosion in central Prague on Monday.

Police spokesman Tomas Hulan said the explosion occurred at around 9:56 a.m. local time and that an initial investigation suggests the explosion was caused by a leaking gas pipe.

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Rescue workers help a woman who was injured in an explosion in Prague on Monday.

"The explosion was caused by gas," a police officer working near the blast site told The Wall Street Journal. The officer was cordoning off the area and instructing passersby to move away.

The police can't confirm if anyone is buried in rubble inside the damaged building, Mr. Hulan said.

"According to preliminary information, we believe that up to four people suffered from severe injuries in the wake of the blast and most other injuries, totaling around 40, are light ones largely caused by cuts from shattered glass," Zdenek Schwarz, the head of Prague Emergency Medical Services, said.

The building is on a side street near the National Theater, the Prague FAMU film school and the popular Cafe Slavia on the east bank of the Vltava river. The area is a tourist destination and offers views of the Prague castle perching on the hill across the river.

Buildings located in a radius of more than hundred meters had their windows shattered, including the glass front of the New Scene building of the National Theater.

 SOURCE : http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887323528404578452313589131382.html