Two mechanics in Oddar Meanchey province died and another person was injured yesterday when a petrol tanker exploded while it was being worked on in a garage.

“Like a bomb” was how Ke Samneng, deputy police chief in Anlong Veng district, described the explosion.

He said that the mechanics, working out of a garage in Lumtong Thmey village, went to weld shut a puncture in the massive tank, and the petrol’s flammability triggered the accident.

The power of the blast, he added, tossed workers 10 metres away from the tanker.

He said that one victim, So Vandeth, 24, died instantly, while Chin Chen, 26, succumbed to injuries at the hospital. An assistant at the garage, Prong Prem, is still unconscious.

According to Chun Reah, Lumtong commune chief, believes the mechanics thought they were safe since the opening of the tanker was closed, even though there was still petrol inside.

To contact the reporter on this story: Khouth Sophak Chakrya at [email protected]