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Explosions rock two Colombian shipyards - leave two dead, 22 injured

Explosions rock two Colombian shipyards - leave two dead, 22 injured
Colombian officials say that three explosions have rocked two industrial shipyards in the coastal city of Cartagena, killing four people and injuring 22, according to media reports.

Local television said that three explosions were felt on Wednesday morning up to five kilometres away. Two large black plumes of smoke were seen rising above the shipyards.

Adm. Jorge Carreno, president of the Coctemar shipyard, said one of the blasts happened while workers were repairing a freighter. The explosion caused a fire that left several people with serious burns.

Cartagena’s Secretary of Interior Fernando Nino Mendoza said that the three explosions were localised  in the industrial area of the city of Cartagena, Colombia, in the Cotecmar and Astivik shipyards and did not correspond to a attack. Nino Mendoza said that investigations are being carried out to find out what were the facts causing such accidents to happen at the same time.

One of the hypotheses for the source of the blasts is that the welding lines are connected through a pipeline of the two companies and there was a contractor doing the repairs. “Meanwhile the source of the blasts are under investigation for the official report,” said the Colombian official.