More than 100 people were killed after a massive explosion in Equatorial Guinea (central West Africa) in March, with 600 injured and almost 300 in hospital. More than 60 people were rescued from under the rubble by the civil protection corps and the fire service.
Local Christians and churches were badly affected too, with a Baptist pastor (as yet unnamed) killed and several members of the Baptist Church of Bata killed or injured.
The blast happened in the military headquarters of Nkoatama. In a TV statement the nation’s President, Teodoro Obiang, blamed it on the ‘negligence of the unit in charge of caring for the dynamite and explosives deposit’, adding that ‘The shockwaves from the explosions caused great damage to almost all buildings in Bata.’
The Baptist Church of Bata, the country’s largest city, was one of the buildings badly affected by the shockwaves, losing the roof of its facilities.
One Baptist missionary in Equatorial Guinea, Marta Nombela, said: ‘The situation is very critical, but thank God the neighbourhood where the house of our mission is was not as affected as others.’ Another young Christian in Bata said: ‘We have never gone through a situation like this. We are fearful and very worried, but we rest in the Lord.’
