Ten other people were injured
Two people were killed and ten others were injured in an explosion at a gas station on the outskirts of Rome early this afternoon, the fire service said.
"Explosion at a gas station in Salaria. One of the firefighters died, as well as one of the civilians. "Unspeakable pain", the firefighters wrote on the official Twitter account of the service.
According to Italian media, as reported by the Athens News Agency, the explosion occurred while a tanker was refueling the gas station, in an area about 30 kilometers northeast of Rome. The fire that followed was brought under control a few hours later, after the intervention of strong fire brigades.
Rieti #Salaria Explosion of cisterns to a fuel distributor at no pressures #BorgoQuinzio
On site @emergencyvvf poliziotti della Questura di Rieti e #PoliziaStradale Rieti season for soccer, mess in site security and travel viability pic.twitter.com/9QzRxuo9st- Polizia di Stato (@poliziadistato) December 5, 2018
Many ambulances and helicopters rushed to Salaria to transport the injured to the capital's hospitals.
Antonio Manoni, the police chief of the city of Rieti, said a total of ten people had been injured and two of them were in serious condition, but that did not mean their lives were in danger.
The Salaria is the highway that connects Rome with Porto d'Ascoli, on the Adriatic, passing through the Rieti. Due to the fire, the traffic was stopped in both traffic streams.