PRAGUE, March 25 (Xinhua) -- An explosion hit the Czech Policske strojirny machinery plant's compound on Tuesday morning, injuring one person, according to firefighters and police.

Czech fire rescue service said the explosion occurred at the plant in the town of Policka before 9:00 a.m. local time.

"Due to the dangerous nature of the environment, a third fire alarm has been declared. Firefighters evacuated one injured person and handed him over to the emergency services. We are evacuating other people from the area," it said on social media platform X.

Czech News Agency reported that the plant produces large-calibre ammunition and deals with repairs of military equipment and supply of spare parts. The accident, it said, happened in an ammunition depot and the injured person, who was in serious condition, was transported to hospital by helicopter.

Czech police said they had set up a safe perimeter around Policske strojirny and evacuated all employees.

"For now, the most likely cause of the explosion appears to be a technical fault in the production technology in one of the halls," the police said on X.

Czech fire rescue service added in an updated post that for safety reasons, a zone within 1.5 km of the scene must be cleared.

"Our documentation department is also heading to inspect the site of the incident. They will conduct a drone survey from a safe distance," it said.

In February 2017, a series of explosions at the plant injured 19 people.

Policske strojirny belongs to the STV Group, a Czech company in the European defense and civilian industry.

Following the explosion, the STV Group said in a statement that "all necessary measures were taken immediately after the incident and we are working intensively with the integrated rescue system." Enditem

Related

Go to Forum >>0 Comment(s)