Thousands of people in Russia thought the enormous explosion was simply an early sunrise - when in fact, flames were as high as 20m
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© CEN
A huge gas explosion was mistaken for an early sunrise by thousands of people in Russia after it caused the sky to light up like a giant fireball. Flames rose over 20 metres high when an underground pipe ruptured near the city of Novy Urengoy in North-Eastern Russia. It is believed there are casualties, but emergency services are not certain how many yet because the intense heat melted everything around it.

A video of the burning flames was shot by shocked resident Lilia Lukyanova, who posted it on social media website vKontakte saying: "This is the view from my window."


Firefighters raced to the scene and managed to get the blaze under control when they discovered where to turn off the gas supply. Supplies to local villages were not affected.

The blast happened near a petrol station and experts have launched an investigation into the cause. It is possible that the pipe, which was 700 millimetres wide could have cracked or split in the freezing conditions as temperatures have plummeted in the region.

Representatives from the gas suppliers Gazprom also attended the scene.