At least 15 people are dead and 228 injured following a series of gas explosions on the streets of a southern Taiwanese city late Thursday night.
Locals had reported gas leaks in the city of Kaohsiung beginning around 9 p.m. local time, Focus Taiwan reported on its Facebook page, and explosions followed three hours later. Some witnesses had reported seeing a "white fog" in the area, while another thought the mysterious substance was "poisonous gas."
A driver's dashcam video apparently captured the sudden blasts, which caught nighttime commuters off guard as they were traveling the city's streets. As the driver behind the camera navigates the city, spouts of flame pop up through the sewage vents as explosions are heard in the distance.
Video posted by one eyewitness on Facebook showed a raging inferno, as blast after blast echoes through the city. Dogs barked in the distance.
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Another Facebook video captures the chaos in the darkened streets -- screams, explosions and police sirens. The uploader describes his video as showing “gas explosions just around the corner… cracked pavement, flares burst” where “one by one drain covers burst into flames, air smells of smoke.”
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Video from Facebook user "The b E Visual" shows the aftermath of the blasts. Cars are smashed and flipped upside down, the road is broken into pieces and emergency workers search for survivors in the wreckage.
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Post by The b E Visual.
And video from YouTube that purports to be surveillance video from the city shows the explosion ripping through an alley filled with street bikes.
Taiwan's Prime Minister Jiang Yi-huah said at least five explosions shook Kaohsiung. The National Fire Agency said five firefighters were among the dead. Power was cut off in the area, making it difficult for firefighters to search for others who might be buried in rubble.
