At least 3 dead, 50 wounded in Chilean hospital explosion

SANTIAGO, April 21 (Xinhua) -- An explosion on Saturday at a medical center in Concepcion, south of capital Santiago, killed at least three people and left around 50 wounded.

The local mayor, Alvaro Ortiz, told the press that the explosion was caused by a gas leak inside the hospital.

Ortiz said that repair work was going on in tower A of the Aleman de Concepcion sanatorium. While the Gas Sur company had evacuated the medical center to ensure everything was under control, people returned inside when the blast took place.

Ortiz said that "it is a highly dramatic situation" and that "a number of the injured are in critical condition."

The governor of the region of Biobio, Jorge Ulloa, also said that the injured had been taken to hospitals, adding that the medical center had been evacuated and "part of the structure had collapsed."

The conflagration from the blast spread over three square blocks and preliminary reports said some neighboring buildings had also suffered structural damage.

Chile's President Sebastian Pinera, in a Twitter post, expressed his "sincere condolences to the victims and their relatives ... my thoughts and prayers are with you."

He added that Health Minister Emilio Santelices and his undersecretary, Paula Daza, would visit the area.

Interior Minister Andres Chadwick also said that he had summoned the Emergency Operations Center to act in collaboration with Biobio authorities. Enditem