Sudan’s transitional government has confirmed the deaths of 23 people in what was described as a huge inferno which raged in a district of the capital for much of Tuesday.
According to a statement by the government on Wednesday, the fire began after the huge explosion of a gas tanker, which was discharging fuel to ground tanks at a ceramic factory in the Bahry district of Khartoum.
According to media reports, most of the victims were workers at the factory, including some foreign nationals.
Those who came away with burns have been admitted to six hospitals across the capital as the Health ministry issued an urgent appeal for blood donations to the victims.
Government officials including the Trade and Industry minister, Abass Madani and the governor of Khartoum, Gen. Ahmed Abdeen, were at the site of the inferno to supervise the firefighting operations.
The government blamed the disaster on what it called the lack of necessary safety measures and equipment to deal with the blaze.
It promised to set up an investigative panel to probe the accident with a view to preventing its recurrence in the future.
AR/as/APA