DUSHANBE, February 20, Asia-Plus - New details have emerged about a natural-gas blast that occurred in Dushanbe today morning. 

According to the Dushanbe firefighting service, a six-year-old child was killed in the blast.   

The gas blast occurred on the first floor at a multi-story residential building in the Sino district of Dushanbe today morning.  According to the Committee for Emergency Situations (CES), a gas blast caused a brief flash fire around 5:50 a.m. 

According to the CES, homeowner Mahmadsafar Safarov and two children, his 12-year-old daughter and his 8-year-old nephew Anvar Domullojonov, with serious burns were taken to a burn-treatment facility.  

In the meantime, the source at the Dushanbe firefighting service said that the blast had resulted in serious damage to the first two floors and a basement of a five-story residential building.  “Homeowner Mahmadsafar Safarov, his wife and their three children with burns were taken to a burn-treatment facility,” the source said, adding that body of a 6-year-old nephew of Safarov was found under the wrecks.  

According to residents of this building, the gas blast caused an explosion of oxygen cylinder that had been kept in the basement.   

75 firefighters as well as specialists from emergency service are currently working on the site of the blast.  According to some of them, the damaged multi-story residential building is now not fit for living.  

According to the firefighting service, 10 gas blasts were reported in Dushanbe last year. Specialists from the firefighting service claim that the majority of the blasts occurred as homeowners did not observe fire safety rules when using gas stoves.