FOUR of the six Burger King employees injured in a gas explosion that ripped through the store’s New Kingston location on Wednesday morning were released from the hospital.

The remaining two employees remained in hospital where they were being treated treatment, said a representative of Restaurants Associates Limited (RAL), operator of the Burger King franchise.

“This is the first incident of its kind in our over 40 years of operating in Jamaica as Burger King. Thankfully though, there were no fatalities and our team is recovering under medical attention. I’ve actually been able to speak with most of them directly, and thankfully they are okay despite being understandably shaken up,” said Lisa Lake, CEO and director of RAL.

Three of the employees involved were said to have sustained visible injuries, however, all six were taken to the hospital.

“Our priority right now is the well-being of all affected, and we’d actually like to take this time to thank the emergency personnel and the persons that were on site for their quick action. We continue to work with the authorities, thoroughly review the situation, and determine what actually caused this explosion,” Lake added.

The CEO said that the New Kingston location will remain closed until further notice.

Commissioner of the Jamaica Fire Brigade Stewart Beckford told reporters on the scene that his team received calls about an explosion at about 10:36 am. He said that upon arrival, the building was extensively damaged, with its windows and doors blown out.

He said when the staff reported for the work they discovered that there was a gas leak and they called the supplier to come and look at the cylinder. “The supplier came in and recognised that there was a defective regulator,” Commissioner Beckford said.

He said the regulator was changed, and employees were given the green light to resume operation. However, 10 minutes later, the explosion took place.

“It is our belief that the explosion was due to a build-up of gas in the environment, mixed with ambient air and of course, and some naked flames would’ve been brought in terms of lighting of a stove and that would have triggered the explosion that we saw here,” said Beckford.

The fire chief said that staff members from a nearby Pizza Hut were also impacted by fumes from the smoke. He said that at least two employees fainted and were treated on location.

Paul Brown, a vendor stationed beside Burger King, shared that the explosion was so powerful he thought it was an earthquake.

“I was at my stall at the time it happened, and I literally heard the explosion lick past my ears. It coming like an earthquake. I literally run weh, and then I find myself starting to help some of the workers because is them did really feel it the most,” he told the Jamaica Observer.

“You did have one tall youth, him burn up real bad, and two of the girls they burn up too. All them skin me see like it a peel off. It was very bad in there. Luckily, it wasn’t midday because them time here in the morning is not a lot of people in there, just a few people,” said Brown.

A woman on the scene, who gave her name as Jemonique — a former Burger King employee who worked at the New Kingston location for a year — said she was in the middle of doing a client’s hair when she heard the news about the explosion and immediately left to check if her friends were okay.

“Cold bumps wash me when I hear, all me eyes them red. I start to bawl, me not even do weh me have to do, me just leave, jump on a taxi and come out here because a mi family that,” she told the Observer.

She shared that the store manager, who is reportedly among those injured, is a mother figure to her, and she had grown close with most of the employees injured in the blast.

“Mi a pray to God say dem alright,” she said.