Seven dead in restaurant blast in Western Turkey

Seven dead in restaurant blast in Western Turkey
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Governor of Aydin province said the explosion took place while restaurant staff were switching gas cylinders

An explosion at a restaurant in Western Turkey killed seven people including three children and wounded five others on Friday, with preliminary investigation showing a gas leak may have caused the blast.

The governor of Aydin province Huseyin Aksoy said initial testimonies from a restaurant worker suggested there was a leak in a cooking gas cylinder, leading to an explosion at around 3.35 pm local time in the Nazilli district.

Three children were among seven people who died Friday in a gas blast at a restaurant in the western Turkish province of Aydin, officials said.

The local governor said the blast went off in the kitchen, where workers were switching one of the gas canisters used to fuel the stove.

Four people were hospitalized with two of the survivors jumping out of the second-floor window to escape the blaze, local media reports said.

Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag tweeted that one person who is “alleged to have caused the explosion” was detained and three prosecutors were investigating the incident.

Reports in Turkish media also said there was a fire following the explosion in the doner kebab shop.

Television images showed the charred remains of the two-floor restaurant, which had its windows and doors blown off by the explosion.

Four people were hospitalized with two of the survivors jumping out of the second-floor window to escape the blaze, local media reports said.