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By Jolene Marriah-Maharaj 
26m ago
Durban – A massive explosion took place on Friday morning at the Engen Oil Refinery on Tara Road, south of Durban.
Residents as far away as Manor Gardens, Glenwood and Pinetown reported being awakened by a loud roar shortly after 7 a.m.
A resident who declined to be identified said she was getting her children ready for school when she heard the knock and ran to check the window.
“I first thought it was an earthquake, when I heard the windows rattle but I saw smoke roaring in the sky,” he said.
According to Garrith Jamieson, an advanced life support paramedic, the area around the refinery compound has been closed to traffic while emergency crews tend to the fire.
He said that from the information received it appears that a kind of tanker had exploded.
“The explosion has been felt in many parts of Durban up to the Clare Estate.”
At this stage, it is unclear whether there were injuries or deaths.
This is a story in development and updates will follow.
In 2005, an explosion shook houses in Merebank when a solvent tank fire broke out at the Engen oil refinery in Durban.
Dr. Ram Rambeharie, who lives near the refinery, said the explosion shook his home. “The sirens sounded twice, which meant there was something serious. If they had sounded one more time, it would have meant an evacuation,” he said.
MESS
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