Gas Bottle Triggered Sofia Restaurant Blast, Experts Confirm

Eleven people were injured when a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) canister exploded Sunday evening at a Chinese restaurant in central Sofia. Photo by BGNES

Experts have confirmed that the explosion at a Chinese restaurant in downtown Sofia that left 11 injured Sunday night has most probably been caused by a natural gas bottle, the interior ministry announced on Monday.

Teams conducted new inspection of the premises on Monday in a bid to reconstruct what happened.

Firefighters have retrieved 14 gas bottles from the restaurant.

11 people, including 2 passers by, have been injured by the blast, one of them still in critical condition Monday morning.

The explosion tore off parts of the facade of a building located right in Sofia's center, opposite the St. Nicholas Russian church on Tsar Osvoboditel Blvd.