Three people injured in fire after explosion in Vlaardingen home

The Safety Region reported that a fire broke out in a house at the junction of Wilhelminastraat and Willem Beukelszoonstraat in Vlaardingen following an explosion on Friday night. As a result, three residents were taken to hospital.

Op de #Wilhelminastraat in #Vlaardingen was er rond 1.45 uur een harde knal te horen. Daarna brak er brand uit in de woning. 3 bewoners zijn naar het ziekenhuis gebracht. Beelden en sporen zijn veiliggesteld. Iets gezien of gehoord? Bel 0900-8844 of anoniem 0800-7000.

— Politie Eenheid Rotterdam eo (@POL_Rotterdam) March 30, 2024

The explosion occurred around 1.45 a.m. and caused a major fire. When the emergency services arrived, flames were already shooting out of the building. According to a spokesperson, the building was completely burnt out and uninhabitable.

According to the safety region, the fire department rescued one person from the roof of the building. A total of three people, who are the tenants of the building, had to be taken to hospital with unknown injuries. Two of them are said to have inhaled smoke. The third person was in a more serious condition, having inhaled hot smoke. The spokesman for the security region believes this person is still in hospital for treatment.

RTV Rijnmond reported that a garage box in the property's immediate vicinity is registered in the name of a plumber who has been the frequent target of explosions in recent months. Mayor Bert Wijbenga had the plumber's house in Gretha Hofstralaan closed for the third time on March 21. The spokesman for the safety region "assumes" that the box actually belongs to the plumber.

The building was closed because there had been another explosion in the plumber's apartment shortly beforehand. As a result, two people were arrested for possible involvement in the series of explosions in the house: A 16-year-old boy from Hellevoetsluis and a 23-year-old man from Rotterdam. Wijbenga informed the residents in a letter that surveillance in the area would be increased and that the investigative team working on the case would be expanded.

According to the spokesperson for the security region, the police will conduct further investigations on Saturday. Due to previous incidents, a camera has been placed near the property in the area. He expects the images on it to be checked.

Several suspects have already been arrested for the explosions surrounding the Vlaardingen plumber. The first one was in court last week, RTV Rijnmond wrote.

The spokesman said the explosion caused a lot of commotion in the neighborhood. "There have been many attacks in this neighborhood, the residents are more than annoyed. Emotions are running high. Last night, it was pretty crowded at the scene of the fire, too. People were watching in their pajamas; they were very upset."