According to the Colombian press, a strong explosion shook the industrial town of Soacha around 5 p.m. local time.
Of undetermined origin, the explosion took place in a powder and fireworks factory known as “Pyrotechnics the Cowboy”, indicated the mayor of Bogota, Carlos Galan, on his X account.
Still on X, the mayor of Soacha, Juan Sanchez Perico, reported 29 injured who were transferred to four different hospitals.
Significant emergency resources were immediately deployed on site.
“At this time, the town hall, the firefighters of Soacha and Bogota continue to respond to the emergency”, with the support of the police, civil defense and specialized units against explosives.
According to images posted on social networks, an immense plume of grayish smoke rose at the end of the afternoon above the factory site.
The windows of surrounding homes were blown out, and numerous fire engines were on site in the early evening, according to images provided to AFP by the same firefighters.
© 2024 Belga Newsbriefing. All rights of reproduction and representation reserved. All information reproduced in this section (dispatches, photos, logos) is protected by intellectual property rights held by Belga Newsbriefing. Therefore, none of this information may be reproduced, modified, redistributed, translated, commercially exploited or reused in any way without the prior written consent of Belga Newsbriefing.
