Refinery blast kills at least 39 in Venezuela, dozens hurt

Описание: (26 Aug 2012) A huge explosion rocked Venezuela's biggest oil refinery early on Saturday - killing at least 39 people and injuring more than 80 others in the worst disaster in memory for the country's key oil industry.
Balls of fire rose over the Amuay refinery, one of the largest in the world, and lit up the night sky as firefighters struggled to contain the blaze.
The explosion shattered walls of nearby shops, ripped out windows from homes and left the surrounding streets covered with rubble and twisted scraps of metal.
At least 86 people were injured, nine of them seriously, the country's health minister said at a hospital where the injured were taken.
She said 77 people suffered light injuries and were released.
Flames reaching nearly 100 feet into the air still crackled almost 20 hours after the explosion - giving off searing heat felt by the residents of a neighbourhood approximately 1,000 feet (300 metres)away.
President Hugo Chavez declared three days of mourning and ordered an investigation to determine the cause of the explosion.
First reports suggested a leakage of natural gas, which then ignited.
The refinery complex's general manager denied a lack of maintenance was to blame.
He said that in the past three years more than six (b) billion US dollars has been invested in maintaining the country's refineries.
Vice President Elias Jaua, who travelled to the area in western Venezuela, said on state television late on Saturday that at least 39 people were killed by the explosion, up from the earlier death toll of 26.
He said that the dead included 18 National Guard troops and that six of the bodies had not yet been identified.
Other officials said earlier that the dead included a 10-year-old boy.
Nine storage tanks have been damaged and supplies of fuel had been cut off to part of the refinery.
Amuay is part of the Paraguana Refinery Complex, which also includes the adjacent Cardon refinery.
Together, the two refineries process about 900-thousand barrels of crude per day and 200-thousand barrels of petrol.
Venezuela is a major supplier of oil to the US and a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).

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