Dispute at a petrol station in Muthanna triggers large fire

AL-MUTHANNA — A fire erupted early Friday at the New Al-Rumaythah Public Petrol Station in Al-Muthanna, destroying eight fuel pumps and a Kia sedan. The blaze stemmed from a reported dispute between a pickup truck driver and a station attendant.

The cause of the argument remains under investigation.

According to video surveillance footage, the pickup truck driver attempted to leave the station while the fuel pump hose was still attached to the vehicle. The footage showed the hose detaching and igniting upon the driver pulling away, triggering a rapid fire that engulfed the station and a nearby Kia. The Kia’s driver escaped the vehicle unharmed before the flames spread.

Civil defense teams responded swiftly, securing the area and extinguishing the fire. Their intervention, according to a statement released by the Directorate of Civil Defense, “prevented any human casualties and minimized material damages.”

The pickup truck driver fled the scene immediately after the incident. Authorities are pursuing the driver, whose vehicle and license plate number were captured on surveillance video, to determine their role in the incident.