RIYADH – The Civil Defense in Riyadh region announced Friday the formation of a committee to assess the damages from a gas tanker explosion that killed 22 people and injured 133 others Thursday morning. Civil Defense spokesman Captain Mohammed Al-Hubail Al-Hammadi said in a statement that the committee started its work Friday. He called upon those affected by the explosion to approach the committee at the headquarters of the Special Emergency Forces of Civil Defense in Al-Salam neighborhood, east of Riyadh. The affected are individuals, homeowners and companies, Al-Hammadi said. He said that the accident site is safe now and is free of any residues of gas leakage. Meanwhile, an insurance expert in Riyadh estimated the damages to exceed SR1 billion. He said insurance companies will look into the main cause of the accident to determine whether the damages are covered under insurance. Insurance companies will also analyze several perspectives: Was the main cause of the accident the collision of the tanker with one of the pillars of the bridge or the explosion of the tanker or speeding? They will also look into aspects including the damages due to the accident, the loss and damages to the tanker, injury to the tanker driver, loss of the gas carried by the tanker, the damages and losses to the bridge, Khurais Road and the surrounding roads, damage and losses to the infrastructure and services in the area including electricity, telephone and sanitary drainage networks, damage to property including vehicles owned by individuals and companies, buildings and their contents, physical injuries and deaths of individuals, and losses to companies due to the suspension of activities. The explosion from the gas tanker that crashed into the bridge was so strong that it brought down an industrial building and torched nearby vehicles, officials and eyewitnesses said. The Civil Defense department said the tanker carrying butane gas hit the bridge on the Khurais Road-Sheikh Jaber Street intersection in the eastern part of the city at about 7.30 a.m. Thursday, causing a gas leak and an explosion in a nearby heavy machinery and vehicles warehouse. Explosives expert Maj. Gen. Engineer Nasser Al-Otaibi told Al-Jazirah Online that gas is one of the most destructive substances when it explodes. He added that tankers transporting gas are not galvanized to withstand explosions. They are only equipped to prevent the leakage of gas. Al-Otaibi said that the collision of the tanker with one of the pillars of the bridge put extreme pressure on the gas which caused the explosion. Only six of the dead have so far been identified, because most of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition. A DNA analysis will be carried out to determine their identities. Director General of Health Affairs in Riyadh region Dr Adnan Suleiman Al-Abdul Kareem said Friday that 79 injured – 35 Saudis and 44 non-Saudis – have been discharged from hospitals while 54 – 20 Saudis and 34 expatriates – were still receiving treatment. Philippine officials said that a Filipino truck driver was among those killed and 10 other Filipinos were among the injured. Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Raul Hernandez Friday identified the deceased truck driver as Florentino Santiago. He said the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh was making arrangements to repatriate Santiago's remains and assist the victims. Santiago's wife Jocelyn Santiago told a local radio that she had been informed that her husband was sleeping in his truck near the explosion site when he was killed. The injured Filipinos are in good and stable condition, the Philippine envoy to Saudi Arabia said Friday. In a radio interview, Ezzedin Tago said that based on reports they received from the hospitals where the Filipinos were taken, no one was reported to be in critical condition.
