Lithuanian gas pipeline hit by large explosion - BBC

A ample blast has deed a state pipeline successful the Pasvalys portion of bluish Lithuania, adjacent the Latvian border.

Images broadcast by section media showed flames illuminating the nighttime sky, but officials accidental determination person been nary injuries caused by the explosion.

Latvia's Defence Minster Artis Pabriks wrote connected Twitter that the origin of the incidental would beryllium investigated and said sabotage could not beryllium ruled out.

But the pipeline's relation said it did not judge the blast was suspicious.

"According to the archetypal assessment, we bash not spot immoderate malign cause, but the probe volition screen each imaginable options," Amber Grid main enforcement Nemunas Biknius told reporters. "We bash not spot the signs of immoderate imaginable interaction from outside."

Mr Biknius said the pipeline - which was built successful 1978 - had undergone immoderate caller attraction work, and that officials would effort to found whether that had contributed to the blast.

"All reasons volition beryllium investigated and clarified successful the coming days," Mr Biknius said.

He added that the state proviso to the pipeline had been chopped disconnected and that the occurrence had subsided aft 4 hours and that authorities and specialists investigating the incidental person had nary accusation astir immoderate intentional harm to the pipeline.

The pipeline consists of 2 parallel systems, and Amber Grid said the detonation occurred successful 1 of them. The different was undamaged. Amber Grid added that the blast had taken spot "away from immoderate residential buildings".

The politician of Pasvalys district, Gintautas Geguzinskas, told LRT that helium didn't person immoderate factual accusation connected the origin of the blast, but said that section residents had told him "they saw immoderate enactment being done adjacent the pipeline wherever the detonation happened".

In footage obtained by the LRT quality outlet, flames could beryllium seen rising immoderate 50 metres (160 feet) into the air. The blast was besides reportedly disposable from up to 17 km (11 miles) away.

Meanwhile, the BNS quality bureau reported that officials had decided to evacuate the adjacent colony of Valakelie. The municipality has a colonisation of astir 700 people.

Firefighters extinguished the flames astir 21:00 section clip (19:00 GMT).

The pipeline is utilized by Amber Grid - Lithuania's nationalist state institution - to transportation state into the northbound of the state and to proviso neighbouring Latvia.

Consumers successful the country are being supplied by an alternate pipeline.