Police link Vaasa apartment blast to alcohol distilling

Police suspect that an alcohol distilling apparatus may have caused an overnight apartment explosion in Vaasa, Yle reports. The cause has not been confirmed.

The Ostrobothnia Police Department said on Tuesday that officers found distilling equipment in the badly damaged apartment in Vaasa’s Ristinummi district.

The apartment’s resident suffered extensive burns and was seriously injured. Police briefly spoke to the resident before the person was taken for further treatment.

The blast’s pressure wave also shattered windows in the stairwell of the building. The explosion occurred at about 12.30am on Sala-ampujankatu in Ristinummi. The apartment was on the top floor of a three-storey small apartment building.

Rescue services, paramedics and police were called to the scene. The rescue service said alarms were also received from several locations outside the building.

Police are investigating the case as causing general danger through negligence and as an alcohol offence. The investigation is continuing.