Several Vehicles In Flames After Explosion In Italy's Milan, Rescue Operations On

Milan city’s mayor, Giuseppe Sala, assured that it was not an attack and that everyone was alive.

A blast rocked a Milan street on Thursday when a van full of oxygen gas canisters caught fire, injuring the driver and setting nearby vehicles on fire, news agency Reuters quoted local officials as saying. The city’s mayor, Giuseppe Sala, assured that it was not an attack and that everyone was alive. Sala said the driver of the van had acted quickly and bravely to save the oxygen cylinders he was transporting after his engine ignited. “He tried to contain the damage but then there was a big boom,” Reuters quoted the mayor as saying.

He added that the driver had minor injuries. Firefighters put out the fire, which had created huge black smoke clouds. Eyewitnesses said the fire had reached a nearby building, which was cleared. A local school was also emptied.

The driver of the van hurt his hand when he tried to stop the fire, firefighter Carlo Cardinali told reporters at the scene. He was treated at the scene and taken to a hospital.

The cause of the explosion was unknown, but Cardinali said the fire spread fast because of the amount of explosive material on board. Police were investigating. Around 200-300 children at a school and day care complex were safely evacuated, news channel Sky TG24 quoted Mayor Sala as saying.