93-year-old blows up house in Vienna: nine injured, suspected intentional gas explosion
Nine people injured in explosion of single-family house in Vienna's 21st district Floridsdorf. Police suspect the 93-year-old house resident of deliberately tampering with the gas line to trigger the explosion.
93-year-old blows up house in Vienna: nine injured, suspected intentional gas explosion
A single-family house in Vienna's 21st district Floridsdorf was completely destroyed by a violent gas explosion shortly after midnight between Saturday and Sunday. Nine people were injured in the incident, including a 25-year-old pregnant woman, according to Austrian broadcaster ORF.
The detonation on Karl-Benz-Weg completely demolished the building and damaged numerous surrounding houses. Parked cars and glass surfaces nearby were also destroyed by the blast wave. Six people suffered minor injuries, while two others had to be admitted to hospital. Among the injured is the 93-year-old house resident himself, whom rescue workers were able to recover from the rubble in the basement using specialist cameras and search dogs. He suffered second-degree burns and was transferred to intensive care.
Vienna police spokesman Philipp Haßlinger said on Sunday that the public prosecutor's office has issued a warrant for the pensioner's arrest. The suspicion is that he deliberately tampered with the gas lines to cause the explosion. "During the course of investigations, indications emerged that the gas lines in the single-family house may have been tampered with," Haßlinger said.
The accused is being held under police guard in hospital. He is to be questioned once his health condition permits. He is accused of deliberately putting people and property at general risk.
According to media reports, the 93-year-old lived alone and had been in dispute with his stepson for approximately two years. The stepson allegedly urged him to leave the house and move to a nursing home. However, the pensioner possessed a lifelong right of residence and refused to vacate the flat. A planned court hearing was scheduled for 8 July. The exact cause of the explosion has not yet been officially announced, and investigations are continuing.
Source: Večernji list