Makunudhoo blast: Bodies of deceased handed over to families

Maldives Police Service states that the bodies of the two individuals who died in a powerful gas explosion at Makunudhoo on Saturday have been transported to India on Tuesday.

They said the bodies were transported for their handover to the families of the deceased.

The explosion of a gas cylinder in Makunudhoo's fishmarket area was reported to authorities late Saturday afternoon. 

Two people were killed in the incident. They were identified as two male expatriate workers – both of them employed by the contractor for the land reclamation project to build an airport on the island.

A local told Sun the explosion took place near the fish market, located at the southern end of the island’s harbor, at around 04:15 pm, describing the explosion appeared to have been some sort of gas explosion.

Parts of a gas cylinder were found at the scene.

The explosion shattered the glass windows of nearby buildings, as well as some of the boats docked at the island’s harbor.