Aden.. Prime Minister forms investigation committee into Mansoura gas station explosion and directs review of licenses issued since 2016

Prime Minister Dr. Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak issued a decision today, Saturday, to form a committee to investigate the gas station explosion incident in Mansoura District in the interim capital, Aden, which resulted in a number of deaths, injuries and material damage.

This comes after a direct field visit by the Prime Minister following the incident, last Friday evening, to the gas station site to inspect the effects of the explosion, determine the circumstances of what happened, and listen to explanations from citizens and concerned authorities about the incident and the preventive measures that must be taken to avoid such incidents, according to the Yemeni News Agency "Saba".

Prime Ministerial Resolution No. 36 of 2024 stipulated the formation of an investigation committee headed by the Director General of the Yemeni Oil and Gas Corporation, with membership of representatives from the Ministries of Legal Affairs and Human Rights, Justice, Interior (Civil Defense Authority) and (General Administration of Criminal Evidence), and the local authority in Aden Governorate.

It also stipulated that the committee shall undertake the task of investigating and determining the circumstances of the gas filling station explosion in Mansoura District, Aden Governorate, and submit a report on the results of its work and recommendations to the Prime Minister, within a period not exceeding five days from its date.

In this context, the Prime Minister directed the head of the Central Organization for Control and Accounting to assign a team of specialists from the organization to visit the Yemen Gas Company to review all licenses issued for the establishment of gas stations, from 2016 to date.

The directive stressed that the Audit and Accountability Authority team should ensure that the licenses issued to establish gas stations comply with the standards and conditions stipulated by law, stressing the importance of providing the Prime Minister with the results urgently, in light of which strict measures will be taken against violators.

The Prime Minister inspected the site of the accident caused by the explosion of a tank at a gas station at the Hashed-90th Line intersection in Mansoura, and listened to the measures taken by the competent authorities to contain the fire, which resulted in three deaths and a number of injuries, and directed to assess the damage caused by the explosion.

During the visit, he stressed the need to punish any official proven to be involved in granting illegal permits for gas stations in residential neighborhoods in violation of occupational safety procedures and standards, and the serious risks this poses to residents, stressing the need for the safety of society to always be a top priority and holding negligent officials fully responsible for the negligence.