Man fights for life after takeaway blast
A man is fighting for his life in hospital after being critically injured in a major explosion at a takeaway food shop which forced hundreds to be evacuated from nearby homes.
At 1.18am (AEDT) today emergency crews were called to Mountain St in inner-city Ultimo, following reports of an explosion loud enough to be heard several kilometres away.
The man suffered serious burns after the explosion at Nando's chicken takeaway on the ground floor of a nine-storey building, and was rushed to Concord Hospital where he remains in a critical condition.
He has been linked to a car, parked near the building, which has been seized by police investigating the explosion and subsequent fire.
The man was not a resident of the Quadrant apartment block or a worker at the Nando's business, police Acting Commander Chris Keen told reporters.
"The person who was seriously injured, he was in the lift well beside the chicken shop," he said.
"We've seized a car ... we are unable to say whether it (the explosion) is linked to the car but it is linked to the person injured in the lift well."
Another man was rescued from the second floor of the building and taken to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in a stable condition.
Detectives are investigating possible links between the explosion and an armed robbery at Nando's about 9pm (AEDT) on Sunday.
"Two males, one armed with a knife, assaulted the attendant and escaped with a sum of cash," police said in a statement.
"Inquiries are continuing. It is too early in the investigation to link the two incidents."
Triple-0 callers who reported the explosion said there was a strong smell of gas, but Commander Keen said that smell was not noticed by firefighters who were first on the scene.
The Nando's business, closed at the time of the explosion, was completely gutted and nearby offices also sustained damage.
Several hundred people were evacuated from Quadrant apartments, with two busloads taken to emergency accommodation at a hotel near Sydney Airport.
It may be days before residents - many of whom are university students - and workers in the area can return to their properties.
"This may be a crime scene for a number of days at this stage," Commander Keen said.
A resident named only as Glen told ABC radio the noise of the blast was terrifying.
"It was really scary," he said.
"I was awake and felt something and it was that loud, I jumped on the floor."
The blast blew plate glass doors off hinges and engineers have been called in to assess the structural stability of the building.
Police are yet to speak with either of the injured men.
Source: Sydney Morning Herald
