Explosion in van sets multiple cars on fire in Wateringen residential neighborhood

An explosion in a van caused a large amount of damage at a parking lot on the Singel in Wateringen on Thursday morning. One person got hurt, a spokesperson for the fire department told Omroep West. Due to fuel leakage, a total of six cars ended up on fire.

The explosion in the middle of the residential neighborhood happened just before 6:00 a.m. Locals told the broadcaster that the van's owner, a roofer, was opening his vehicle when the explosion occurred. They speculate that a gas bottle may have been leaking.

Locals reported being woken by a thunderous bang. “I was completely shocked. I thought my house was falling down; that was my first thought,” a man who lives near the parking lot told Radio West. Looking out his window, he saw smoke and a burning car in the parking lot. “I saw someone stumble away. I understood that it was the van's owner and that he wasn’t hurt too badly.”

The fire department had the fire under control shortly after 7:00 a.m.

The explosion blew out the van’s windshield, which landed on the roof of a nearby house. “The havoc is great,” an Omroep West reporter said from the scene. “You can only see the skeleton of the gray van where the explosion took place. The other cars are also heavily damaged.”

There was also damage to a residential property alongside the small parking area where the fire started, fire department representative Ronald de Hoog told reporters at the scene.