Tags:

G.T: The resident of the house affected by the explosion in the natural gas pipeline at Rua Anita Garibaldi, Vila Progresso, in Jundiaí (SP), died at dawn on Saturday (3). Leonardo Martins, 87, was hospitalized at Oswaldo Cruz Hospital in São Paulo after having 50% of his body burned.

According to the Fire Department, the house that collapsed was under construction and two buildings around it needed to be interdicted and evacuated by the corporation. A video recorded the moment of the explosion.

There was a work of a fiber optic operator being carried out on the spot. After the leak, the gas was housed inside the residence and, due to a source of ignition, like a spark, the explosion occurred.

An employee of the natural gas company was also injured in the accident and, according to the company, is still hospitalized.

In a statement, Comgás lamented the death of the elderly and reported that the incident occurred during works carried out by an engineering company that was performing the installation of optical fiber in the street.

Comgás also said that it closely monitors investigations into the incident, giving full support to the victim's family and also to the official who arrived there shortly before the explosion and was hospitalized.

Leonardo's body will be buried this Sunday (4), at 11am, at the Nossa Senhora do Desterro Cemetery, in Jundiaí.

Firefighters reported that as soon as they arrived, there was still gas smell. That's why neighborhood residents needed to leave their homes, including a 20-storey building with 80 apartments across the accident area.

According to the Civil Defense, two houses had to be interdicted and continue under technical evaluation, while the others have already been released to the residents.

All persons close to the scene of the explosion and the companies involved will be called at the police station to provide clarification. The police want to identify the responsibilities and find out if there was a failure in the security procedure to remove people from the houses.

The company responsible for the fiber optic installation says it is investigating what happened at the site.