JEDDAH: A gas cylinder exploded in a soon-to-open branch of a prominent Mexican food chain in Jeddah’s Al-Rawshan Mall injuring 12 restaurant employees yesterday.
Capt. Abdullah Al-Amri, spokesman for the Civil Defense, said the explosion, which was caused by leaking gas, took place at 11 a.m. yesterday.
He added that the 12 employees did not sustain life-threatening injuries and were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
“I heard a loud explosion. The shop shook. I ran out thinking the mall was going to collapse,” said Khaled, a sales assistant at a shop nearby.
“When I rushed out of the shop, I saw other people running out,” said Jabri Hassan, who works for a shop in front of the restaurant. “After the explosion, nearly 100 people were fleeing the place. That is when I saw the fire,” he said.
Hassan said that he saw five injured workers and that two of the men had sustained serious burns to their hands. He said the others had suffered burns on other parts of their bodies. “All five men came walking out,” he added.
Eyewitnesses said that most of the workers were Filipinos who were setting up the kitchen in preparation for the restaurant’s opening on Wednesday.
The fire was immediately put out and did not spread to other parts of the restaurant.
A security guard, who denied Arab News entry and refused to provide details of what had happened, was standing in front of the restaurant when this reporter visited the mall shortly after the blaze. A handful of laborers were working outside the restaurant, but the effects of the fire could not be seen from the exterior.
The Civil Defense in cooperation with other security bodies is investigating the cause of the fire. Neighboring shops resumed business as normal.
