Two people have been killed and 70 others injured by two massive blasts at a gas station in Al Baydha, central Yemen on Saturday.
The explosions were triggered by a burning car in a nearby garage, Dr Mohamed Al Qaisi, a hospital manager based in the city, told The National.
Dr Al Qaisi described how the blasts sparked a huge conflagration at the same time dozens of people were queuing up for gas.
Severe gas and fuel shortages in Houthi-controlled northern Yemen have caused panic buying and long queues at petrol stations, which exacerbated the severity of incident, Dr Al Qaisi said.
He revealed that eight of the 70 people injured were in a "very critical condition" and had been transferred to the region's largest city, Sanaa, to receive treatment.
“The other [injured parties] were taken to several hospitals and healthcare centres in Al Baydha to be treated,“ he said.
The gas station rocked by the eruptions was built after the Houthi militia took control of Al Baydha in 2015.
"[It] was set up in a crowded street, which includes car garages, a governmental bank and blocks of residences," an anonymous Al Baydha local told The National.
The leadership of the anti-Houthi Public Resistance has accused the Houthi militia of being responsible for the incident.
"[They] must be held accountable because they allowed the owner of the gas station to set it up amid a busy residential street," spokesperson Mustafa Al Baydani told The National.
Long queues of motorists waiting for fuel have been gathering daily in the Houthi-held capital of Sanaa since the beginning of the last week.
Residents told The National that the severe fuel and gas shortages were reportedly caused by pro-Houthi traders hoarding fuel and blocking gas shipments to raise prices.
The Houthi rebels in Yemen - in pictures
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Houthi supporters chant slogans as they attend a demonstration against the United States over its decision to designate the Houthis a foreign terrorist organization in Sanaa, Yemen. AP Photo -
A member of security forces loyal to Yemen's Houthi rebels stands guard as supporters attend a rally denouncing the United States and the Trump administration's decision to apply the "terrorist" designation to the Iran-backed movement. AFP -
A Houthi supporter holds his weapon during a demonstration against the United States over its decision to designate the Houthis a foreign terrorist organization in Sanaa, Yemen. AP -
Opposers of Yemen's Houthi rebels shout slogans during a rally in support of the United States and the Trump administration's decision to apply the "terrorist" designation to the Iran-backed movement, in Yemen's third city of Taez. AFP -
Opposers of Yemen's Houthi rebels shout slogans during a rally in support of the United States and the outgoing Trump administration's decision to apply the "terrorist" designation to the Iran-backed movement, in Yemen's third city of Taez. AFP -
Yemenis opposed to the country's Houthi rebels take part in a rally in support of a recent decision by the United States' outgoing administration blacklisting the Houthi group as a "terrorist" organisation in Yemen's third city of Taez. AFP -
A joint Saudi-backed Sudanese-Yemeni force removes landmines, which they said were planted by the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen's northern coastal town of Midi, in the Hajjah governorate. AFP -
The Saudi-backed Sudanese-Yemeni force removes and de-activates landmines in the Hajjah governorate near the border with Saudi Arabia on the Red Sea. AFP -
The force collected some 5,000 landmines. AFP -
A shot shows landmines collected by the Sudanese-Yemeni force. AFP -
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