Ten killed, 251 injured by gas leak in Jordan port city

A toxic gas leak in Jordan’s southern port city of Aqaba on Monday killed at least 10 people and injured 251, said Faisal al-Shaboul, a government spokesman.

The leak came after a tank filled with toxic gas fell while being transported, state news agency Petra said, citing the spokesperson of the Public Security Directorate.

The directorate said authorities sealed off the area after evacuating the injured to hospitals and sent specialists in to deal with the leak.

Al-Mamlaka TV said 199 were still being treated in hospitals.

Dr Jamal Obeidat, a local health official, urged people to stay inside and close windows and doors. The nearest residential area is 25km away.

A video posted on state television’s Twitter page showed a storage tank falling from a winch and slamming into the deck of a ship, followed by yellow-coloured gas rising into the air as people ran away.

Specialised teams are still dealing with the leak, the Civil Defence service said on its Facebook page, while evacuation planes were being sent into Aqaba.

Prime Minister Bisher al-Khasawneh was headed to Aqaba, state television reported.

Al-Khasawneh also formed an investigation team into the incident chaired by the interior minister, state television cited the information minister as saying.