Butane gas truck explodes, 19 wounded in Tlalnepantla

A tanker truck loaded with 40,000 liters of butane gas rollovered in the part of the road known as Devil's Curve in the municipality of Tlalnepantla, exploding in a fireball that left 19 injured.

The incident occurred around 4:00 a.m. in the morning and caused the death of the driver and damages to 25 houses and commercial centers in the area, as to 10 vehicles.

Mayor Alfredo Martínez reported that the truck was speeding before it rollovered.

According to the head of Risk Prevention and Civil Protection of Tlalnepantla, representatives of Distribuidora de Químicos, the company which owned the truck, has met with the authorities. He added that the truck driver apparently fell asleep.

The locals reported three explosions with a burst of flames that covered the local communities. "Thank God we did not die," expressed Julieta Pacheco Pérez, a resident of San Rafael.

"When we heard the explosions I opened a window and I heard someone shouting, calling for help. 'I am burning, I am burning,' and we covered the flames on that person with a towel," she said.

The body of a cat was found turned to cinders in the street, where also birds were burned. A pitbull named "Panda" had better luck, and just had minor burns in the face.