RSS
Dead and injured in the explosion of the LPG station in Crevedia, near Bucharest
Two people died and 57 were seriously injured following several explosions that took place on Saturday evening at a LPG station located on DN 1A, in Crevedia township, Dâmbovi?a county. 39 firefighters are among the injured victims. 10 people are in serious condition. Three thousand inhabitants were evacuated from a radius of 800 meters.
The Health minister Alexandru Rafila announced that eight other patients who were injured in the explosions at the LPG station in Crevedia will be transferred to hospitals abroad, respectively to medical units in Austria, Germany and Norway.
"In the course of the day and at night, another six patients will be transferred from the Floreasca Emergency Hospital and two patients from the Bagdasar-Arseni Hospital. The destination of these patients will be Austria (...), Germany and one of them will be transferred to Norway. There will be at least two flights that will take these patients, some of them with a stopover," said the minister, on Sunday afternoon, in a press conference.
According to him, two deaths resulted from the events in Crevedia, Dambovita County, northwest of Bucharest, one of those who lost his life having burns on more than 95% of his body surface.
"In total 58 patients, we had two deaths, one of the deaths - a patient with over 95 per cent burned surface of the body. During this night and early morning two patients were transferred to Brussels, two patients to Milan. Unfortunately, one of the patients transferred to Milan is in critical condition and the physicians there are making efforts to stabilize him, he is a 68-year-old patient, the other is a patient around 48 years old whose condition is not just as dramatic, but he is also a critical patient," added Alexandru Rafila.
He pointed out that the relatives of those transferred will be able to accompany them to the country of destination, where they will have social support and consular assistance, and the transportation and accommodation expenses will be covered by the Romanian Government during their stay there.
He also presented the situation of patients hospitalized after the events in Crevedia, Dambovita. "At the Floreasca Emergency Clinical Hospital are 30 patients, three civilians and 27 firefighters. (...) There are five intubated and mechanically ventilated patients. All these patients have been surgically cleaned, monitored and are under permanent evaluation. Intubated and mechanically ventilated patients are, in principle, those who are eligible for transfer abroad. (...) The second hospital with an important number of patients, namely 13, five civilians and eight firefighters is Bagdasar-Arseni Emergency Clinical Hospital. There too are five patients intubated and mechanically ventilated. Also, without being as critical, there are four patients hospitalized at the Clinical Emergency and Plastic Surgery Hospital (the Burn Patients Hospital, ed. n.). Also at the Elias University Hospital, the Bucharest University Emergency Hospital and at the Targoviste County Emergency Hospital are three patients. One of them is currently being transferred to the Plastic Surgery Hospital," the minister of Health also declared.
According to him, all hospitals mobilized medical teams and the White Plan was established, which would make possible specialized medical intervention.
"Depending on the evaluations, these patients will benefit from treatment in the wards for burn patients, (...) the evolution of their state of health is monitored, there is also the possibility of supplementing these transfers which I was referring to, but to the extent that the patients were or are transferred to hospitals abroad, places are also being released in burn hospitals in Bucharest. As you know, yesterday we had six places for major burns. We had about 60 intensive care beds allocated with ventilators, so all the patients who needed intensive care received this type of medical care," explained the minister.
At the same time, Rafila stated that the families of the victims receive psychological support at the Floreasca and Bagdasar-Arseni hospitals, and in the field, in Crevedia, there are teams that offer psychological assistance to those who, even if they were not injured, were affected by the event.
"If necessary, we are ready to supplement this staff depending on the needs in the field and we can operationalize in a short time, if necessary, a green wire line. We have already done simulations. This line will be operational at the Ministry of Health or at the Ministry of Internal Affairs, depending on the needs. (...) The approach of the Romanian Government, from a medical point of view, I think was the correct one, it was without an assumed, responsible approach and which, however, could not have been put into practice without the contribution of physicians, nurses, auxiliary medical staff who did their duty and as I told you, I want to thank them in a special way," the minister of Health said.
The first eight victims were after the first explosion, of which one person died from a heart attack, without burns, and seven injured people (3 with burns transported to the Bucharest Floreasca Emergency Clinical Hospital, 4 with burns transported to the Bagdasar-Arseni Hospital), specify the representatives of the MAI, on Sunday morning, in a press release.
Another 50 victims occurred after the second explosion, of which 3 injured people were transported to ICU Targoviste (Dambovia County, northwest of Bucharest), 47 people to health units in the municipality of Bucharest, with burns and trauma.
Out of the total number of victims, 43 are MAI employees (39 firefighters, 2 policemen and 2 gendarmes).
At around 2:00, 54 people were hospitalized in various sections of the health units, 10 of them being intubated.
Once the Red Intervention Plan was activated, a plan which requires the addition of operative crews, including medical ones, the following intervention forces were mobilized to the scene:
- ISU DB: 6 fire trucks, 1 truck for transporting multiple victims, 11 SMURD ambulances, 2 advanced medical points.
- ISU BIF - 14 fire trucks, 1 robot truck, 1 powder and nitrogen fire truck, 1 ladder truck, 2 advanced medical points, 7 SMURD ambulances, 4 SMURD ambulances with a doctor, 1 CBRN crew, 1 mobile command point , 1 extrication unit.
- ISU PH - 3 fire trucks.
To the above-mentioned added a SMURD helicopter, nine Dambovita SAJ crews, 29 policemen, 30 gendarmes.
"At the same time, for the protection of citizens, a safety perimeter was established at a distance of approximately 800 meters from the site of the intervention and approximately 3,000 residents were evacuated as a precaution. Also, in the vicinity of the area, a message of warning through the RO-ALERT system," says the MAI.
At the level of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, in the presence of Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and the Minister of Internal Affairs, Catalin Predoiu, a crisis cell was established, which also brought together representatives of the Ministry of Health.
"Besides the operational aspects intended for the optimal management of this complex situation, two TELVERDE lines were also operationalized, where the relatives of the victims of the explosion in Dambovita County could find out information about the condition of those affected by this unfortunate event. Following this event, the European Mechanism of Civil Protection was activated, with the aim of carrying out, in an emergency regime, the transfer of heavily affected patients, for the provision of medical care that is required for the major burns. Thus, the first patients will be transferred with an aircraft equipped with the MApN to a health unit in Brussels, following so that during the day others can be transferred, in order to carry out specialized medical interventions," add the representatives of the MAI.
Legend: ISU = Inspectorate for Emergency Situations; ISU BIF = Inspectorate for Emergency Situations of Bucharest and Ilfov County; SMURD = Mobile Emergency Service for Resuscitation and Extrication; CBRN = Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear; PH = Prahova County; DB = Dambovita County.