By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
KUALA LUMPUR (Worthy News) – At least 145 people were injured, and many rushed to hospitals after a massive fire broke out at a natural gas pipeline near Malaysia’s largest city officials confirmed.
Witnesses saw a massive fireball showering flaming debris from the sky and shattering windows outside Kuala Lumpur, the capital.
National oil company Petronas announced that the fire had started at one of its natural gas pipelines but did not explain why it had burst into flames.
The inferno caused 20-story flames and a vast crater in an empty area near a residential neighborhood, according to witnesses and footage seen by Worthy News.
Malaysia’s Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad told the media that among the 145 injured people were at least three children.
He said “67 people” were still being treated at public hospitals, primarily for second and third-degree burns, while “37 others sought treatment from clinics and private hospitals.”
The fire department said the fire damaged 190 houses and 148 cars. Investigations were underway into the cause of the fire. Authorities said homes within 290 meters (yards) of the site will remain off-limits for now.
MUCH DAMAGE
“There is a lot of damage across housing areas,” warned Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, who visited affected residents and pledged financial aid for victims. He told them the government and Petronas would be responsible for repairing affected homes, which could take months.
Survivors in evacuation centers described scenes of chaos that started with an explosion. “The fire is really raging high. And then once you can see debris – you’re talking about debris which is still on fire – started to fall all over the place, that’s (when) we know something bad has happened,” recalled Raja Hilmy Bin Raja Idris, 59, whose house was 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) from the fire.
Evian Wee, 50, told reporters that she initially thought a tornado or earthquake had struck.
“I saw a red glow moving around … I kept hearing things falling – glass, stones, all crashing in. All the windows were shattered,” she explained. “It started off with the explosion; then the windows started shaking violently. That’s when we realized it was an explosion that led to the fire.”
Petronas said it had “isolated” the pipeline and was working closely with all relevant parties to “ensure the safety” of the surrounding community and environment and the security of gas supply to the country.
Yet those efforts came too late for many impacted by the fireball-shaking parts of the Southeast Asian nation.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
More Worthy News
Israel expanded its military campaign against Hezbollah on Monday, striking more than 70 targets across Lebanon as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to increase pressure on the Iranian-backed terror group following a sharp rise in drone and rocket attacks on northern Israel.
A federal appeals court is weighing whether Kansas City can use its public accommodation ordinance to require Christian counselors to counsel gay married couples despite the counselors’ biblical convictions on marriage and sexuality.
Tens of thousands of evangelical Christians gathered in the Netherlands for one of Europe’s largest multi-day Christian events, with organizers and participants expressing hopes for spiritual revival in the nation and across Europe.
President Donald Trump pushed back Monday against sharp criticism from Republicans and former administration officials over a potential U.S.-Iran agreement, insisting that any final accord must prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon or it will not be signed.
President Donald Trump said Monday that countries involved in negotiations over Iran should be required to join the Abraham Accords, signaling that the White House is seeking to turn a possible Iran agreement into a wider regional realignment that includes normalization with Israel.
Tensions remained high in Serbia’s capital Belgrade on Sunday after at least tens of thousands of people demanded elections and rallied against what they view as the increasingly authoritarian rule of President Aleksandar Vučić, with violence erupting after the protest and more than 20 people arrested.
Investigations were ongoing Sunday into the killing of three senior Kuki-Thadou Christian church leaders by unidentified gunmen in India’s northeastern Manipur State, Christian investigators told Worthy News.