Powerful explosions rocked the suburbs of Lithuania’s capital, Vilnius, Wednesday morning, after several liquefied gas railcars caught fire, authorities confirmed. One person was injured, the fire and rescue department reported. Columns of smoke were visible across the city, with residents warned to stay indoors.
Interior Minister Vladislavas Kondratovičius told reporters that initial information suggested that “the fire was most likely caused by a violation of occupational safety conditions, but all versions are being investigated.”
The carriages that caught fire belong to Polish company Orlen, police said.
The tankers were carrying liquefied petroleum gas from Orlen’s Lithuanian unit’s refinery to the Baltoji Vokė LPG terminal in Vilnius, the company said in an email. There was a fire, followed by an explosion, it said.
The terminal isn’t owned by Orlen’s Lithuanian unit, and the logistics operation was carried out by a contractor, so the company is cooperating with authorities to investigate the cause, it said.
“At this point there is no suspicion that this is the result of intentional actions,” it added.
