Pope Francis expressed his closeness and offered his prayers for the 35 dead, including two children, after a fire in a clandestine fuel depot in Benin, West Africa.
In a telegram signed by the Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, addressed to Bishop Aristide Gonsallo, Bishop of Porto-Novo, it is stated: “His Holiness Pope Francis was saddened to learn of the news of the tragic fire that occurred in Sèmè Kraké on September 23 and the loss of life it has caused.”
In that sense, he points out, the Holy Father “joins the families’ mourning, expressing his closeness and his sorrow. He prays for the repose of the deceased, entrusting them to the mercy of God, and for the healing of the wounded.
The Pope “also expresses his support for those who accompany the victims of this tragedy. Asking the Virgin Mary to provide strength and comfort to all those affected by this tragedy, the Holy Father invokes divine blessings on each one and on the entire nation as a sign of consolation.”
The explosion that occurred on Saturday destroyed the warehouse, located not far from the local Catholic church, and destroyed several vehicles parked nearby. According to the Vatican agency Fides , it took firefighters about 10 hours to put out the flames.
In Benin there are thousands of warehouses that sell gasoline that is smuggled from neighboring Nigeria. For several months, the government of the former has been seeking to regularize this situation, so that those who manage these places become regular sellers.