Elderly Woman Killed in Gas Cylinder Explosion in Jerusalem's Old City

An approximately 80-year-old woman was killed Thursday afternoon in a gas cylinder explosion in an apartment in the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem's Old City. A man in his 50s, who was seriously injured and burned all over his body, was taken to hospital for treatment. The circumstances are under investigation.

The report of the gas cylinder explosion was received at MDA's 101 hotline in the Jerusalem area at 3:29 p.m. Paramedics and medics provided initial treatment to the casualties. They performed resuscitation efforts on the woman and ultimately had to pronounce her dead. The seriously injured man was evacuated to Shaare Zedek Medical Center in the capital.

Senior medic Eliyahu Pachter and medics Eliya Nouri and Yair David said, "Using a special MDA all-terrain vehicle, we were able to reach the scene through the alleyways and saw two injured people, including a woman lying on the floor unconscious, with no pulse and no breathing. We provided her with advanced medical treatment that included prolonged resuscitation efforts, but sadly we had no choice but to pronounce her dead. Additional MDA teams treated the seriously injured man and evacuated him to hospital conscious."

Firefighters from the Egoz station also arrived at the scene. When the crews reached the location, damage to the building was identified. Fire and Rescue said, "A preliminary examination indicates that the source of the incident was likely a gas leak from the kitchen area of one of the apartments, which reached flammable levels and caused an explosion. The circumstances of the incident are still under review. The teams worked to search the building and its surroundings, rule out trapped persons, stabilize the scene and remove immediate hazards."

Police from the David station who were called to the scene worked together with fire and rescue forces and emergency personnel to clear routes and handle the scene.