Police in Sevilla are investigating the causes of a fire in an apartment block in the Naciones area of the city in which 11 people were injured and 80 residents had to be evacuated from their homes.
The fire, in an apartment block on the corner of calle Arquitecto José Gómez calle Millán, began in the early hours of this morning as the result of an explosion in the basement of the building where a number of gas bottles were stored. In addition to the gas bottles, a number of cans of petrol were also in the basement and police believe the fire could have been started intentionally.
The explosion occurred at around 04:30 this morning and several people became trapped on several floors of the building. When the firefighters entered the premises, they found gas bottles and other combustible materials placed between the basement and the first floor which, had they ignited, would have resulted in considerable damage and injury.
Three of the injured were admitted to the hospital Virgen del Rocio in Sevilla, two suffering from smoke inhalation and one suffering from minor burns to the arm.