1 killed, 21 injured in gas explosion near Vienna

VIENNA - One person was killed and 21 others were injured, including one seriously, on Tuesday in an explosion at a gas station, some 50 km east of Vienna, the capital of Austria.

The blast also prompted Italy to announce a state of emergency as the flow of gas from Russia to Italy was interrupted.

Fire brigades and rescue teams are at the scene, which has been largely closed to the public.

The blast occurred in the morning at a gas station of the international energy company OMV, not far from the border with Slovakia. It set off a fire which could be seen from the Vienna side. The victims are mostly employees working in the station.

Baumgarten an der March, where the gas station situated, is a small subdivision of the municipality of Weiden an der March in Lower Austria, Austria. It has only around 200 inhabitants.

The fire is almost extinguished, and the explosion destroyed only part of the station and did not trigger a larger explosion in the whole gas station.

The state criminal investigation said a technical defect could be the cause of the tragedy. Terrorism could be ruled out from the accident. But the cause of the accident is still under investigation, while the damage assessment is to be carried out soon.

According to the local media, the gas station is the largest import and takeover station for natural gas in Austria. Natural gas from Russia, Norway and other countries is taken over there, measured, tested and compressed for onward transport. Operator Gas Connect Austria assures that the national natural gas supply can be recovered for the foreseeable future.

Gas Connect Austria, the operator of the site, said the hub had been shut down, but the supply would recover as soon as possible.

The company said its deliveries to Austria's southeastern borders were affected by the explosion. Hungary, Slovenia and Croatia and Italy are recipients of the pipeline gas.

The halt of the supply after the blast made Italy, which is highly dependent on gas supply to announce a state of emergency on Tuesday.

Gas Connect Austria said the supplies would resume as soon as possible.