Five people were injured when a tank loaded with fuel exploded at a gas station in the northeastern Bulgaria city of Razgrad late Monday afternoon.

Two of the injured, a driver from the city of Stara Zagora, 38, and a man from Razgrad, 48, have sustained severe burns and are listed in critical condition in the hospital of the Danube city of Ruse. Their state does not allow for them to be transported to the capital Sofia.

Three other men, of the total of seven people at the gas station at the time of the incident, have sustained lighter injuries, such as light burns and a broken ankle. One of them is the manager of the station.

The call was placed on the 112 emergency hotline after 5:15 pm. People who were in the vicinity at the time say that they heard a loud bang. Nearby offices and stores were evacuated.

The fire was tamed close to midnight. A fire truck remains on the spot Tuesday still cooling down the tank.

Air probes have not revealed increased amount of harmful substances.

The station is the only one in the city providing household gas and is located in a busy district with two gasoline fuel stations, the central bus station, the local college and several large stores nearby.

The initial lead is that the explosion was sparked when gas has been loaded from the tank of a truck to the gas column at the station.