By IANS
Vancouver : A fast food restaurant owned by an Indo-Canadian has been destroyed in a huge explosion on West Broadway here.
The powerful blast on Wednesday night, which could be heard dozens of blocks away, also ripped apart three shops next to the Taco Del Mar restaurant.
The fast food joint was located in an eight-storey building, just five minutes’ drive from downtown.
The explosion was reportedly caused by a fire started inside the restaurant, destroying it as well as a Starbucks shop, a fashion garment shop and a travel agency office in the building.
A man wearing dark clothes was seen running away from the scene immediately after the explosion. He reportedly discarded some pieces of his clothing while running away.
An Indo-Canadian journalist said after visiting the site that the impact of the explosion was so devastating that the whole area resembled a war zone.
“It was a massive explosion, rarely seen in Vancouver. The explosion site looked like a war zone. There were piles of glass pieces, twisted furniture, window-frames, drywall and other stuff strewn all around the blast site for yards and yards,” he said.
“Not far from the city downtown, it is a very busy area, full of shoppers most of the time. Luckily, the explosion happened at night, else there would have been many casualties. The powerful blast shattered even a sixth-floor glass window of the Holiday Inn across the road,” the journalist said.
He said glass windows of many other stores, including a London Drugs outlet, were blown off under the impact of the explosion at about 2.30 a.m. in the morning.
“Though the police are not naming the owner of the restaurant, it is one Harjit Singh Nanda from Surrey. However, we have drawn blank yet as all Nanda families have denied ownership of the food joint,” the journalist said.
He said Taco Del Mar was put on sale some time ago. “Though this is a very upscale area full of hustle and bustle, maybe his business didn’t do well and he put it on sale,” he said.
Reports in the local media said a woman security guard at the Holiday Inn witnessed the explosion and informed the police. She also said she saw a man running away from the blast site.