The Tax Authority at Østerbro in Copenhagen was the site of a large explosion Tuesday night with authorities investigating the possibility of a deliberate attack.
The explosion was described by local residents living near the Tax Authority building as very loud with one witness saying the blast sounded as if “two trains had slammed together”, Danish newspaper Berlingske reports.
“My clothes shook, even though I was sitting inside my apartment,” another resident said. Another person near the building was rushed to the hospital after being hit by a fragment from the explosion, while two cleaners managed to escape the scene without injury.
Chief Police Inspector of the Copenhagen Police, Jørgen Bergen Skov, has said that the investigation into the explosion is still ongoing but said he thought it deliberate, rather than an accident.
“It is too early at this time to say anything about perpetrators and motives. It is also too early to say what caused the explosion. We are conducting technical investigations and have some traces, but for the sake of closer examination, we cannot get into what those traces are,” he said.
Newly elected Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen also commented on the explosion stating that it occurred near a train station when people were in the area and that it was being taken very seriously.
Explosives expert Mikkel Lerdrup told Berlingske that the explosion could have been caused by anything from very powerful fireworks, such as a “chrysanthemum bomb”, to homemade high-power explosives.
The incident comes after a wave of explosions in neighbouring Sweden, including one that led to a 12-year-old being injured as a result of a blast in April in Malmö.
The southern Swedish city, known for its higher than average migrant population, saw a wave of explosions in June forcing police to increase security around police stations and also saw the local government send staff personal safety tips.
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