An explosion and series of fires from beneath the streets of the southern Taiwan city of Kaohsiung have killed 22 people and injured around 270 people.  26 firefighters were among the casualties, including four fatalities.  Residents say they noticed smoke with a “gas-like smell” coming out of drains in the streets, forming a white mist on the surface, which then ignited.

One motorist had his dashcam on and caught the explosion on video.  He was among many who recorded jets of fire shooting several meters from craters in the street into the air.  There were so many such fired that the sky glowed red over the port city of 2.7 million people.

“I saw lots of cars and motorcycles with engines all over on the road, and doctors checking if bodies were dead or alive,” said eyewitness Chen Guan-yuan.

The blast ruptured streets, overturned and destroyed cars, and ignited huge fires.  Rescuers formed a human chain to pull injured people from a deep crater in a road.  Local media said some residents described it as having felt like a powerful earthquake hit the area.

Residents in the area were evacuated to emergency shelters, the municipality’s fire department said in a statement.  The cause of the leak is under investigation.