THREE bodies have been recovered after an explosion rocked the CityONE shopping mall in Kuching this afternoon.

Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department director Khiruddin Drahman said the dead were two employees at the Nene Chicken outlet, which had been scheduled to open tomorrow, and a construction worker.

He said a leaking oxy-acetylene tank used for welding work is believed to be the source of the explosion.

“It is now a police investigation. They will confirm the findings.”

Kuching district police chief Lim Ah Lek said there was no foul play or “criminal element” involved.

“They were putting the final touches and testing equipment for the opening tomorrow when the explosion happened.”

He said the three who died were aged between 29 and 49.

“We are still investigating, but we believe that it was purely a workplace accident.”

The state Civil Defence Department identified the dead as Penangite Chin Hsien Loong, and Sarawakians O Kui Lim and Tchee Kiam Jong.

Khiruddin said 26 people were injured in the 3.37pm incident, with four of them seriously hurt.

Those who sustained minor injuries, including cuts from broken glass and debris, were shoppers and sales representatives at a shop opposite the Nene Chicken outlet.

“We were initially told that five people were trapped under a collapsed wall, but during the search-and-rescue operation, we found that there were six,” said the state fire chief.

“Three of them were pulled out alive. The other three were already dead.”

The Fire and Rescue Department, in an earlier statement, said initial investigations showed that the blast was due to a gas explosion.

“There was a loud explosion, and the whole building shook,” Telekom Malaysia sales representative Nieda Zaie told reporters.

“The cleaners were screaming at us, telling us to exit the building,” said Nieda, who works on the mall’s second floor.

A representative of a beverage company who wanted to be known only as Benny said he was installing equipment at the Nene Chicken outlet when “it suddenly exploded”.

He said there were “20 people” nearby at the time of the incident.

The mall management, in a Facebook post, said CityONE is closed “until further notice”.

Padungan assemblyman Wong King Wei, who was at scene, said he will raise the issue of workplace safety with Human Resources Minister M. Kula Segaran.

“I will ask him to look into this incident, and draw up tighter safety rules and regulations for the workplace.” – December 4, 2018.