King chairs meeting on Aqaba gas leak

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Tuesday chaired a meeting at the National Centre for Security and Crisis Management to check on the latest developments of Monday’s gas leak incident in Aqaba.

At the meeting, attended by HRH Crown Prince Hussein via telepresence from Aqaba, King Abdullah extended condolences to the families of those who died in the line of duty, wishing the injured a speedy recovery, according to a Royal Court statement.

His Majesty, who has been following up with the Crown Prince on the details of the incident and rescue and evacuation efforts from the very beginning, stressed the need to provide transparent explanations to the public after investigations conclude, as well as identifying shortcomings and holding those responsible to account by law.

The King called for taking the necessary precautions to avoid a repeat of such incidents in the future.

His Majesty commended the efforts of Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army and security agencies’ personnel, especially the Civil Defence Department (CDD) and civilian and military medical staff, for their swift response and high professionalism in dealing with the incident and evacuating the injured.

These efforts have contributed to saving lives and limiting losses, the King said, wishing a speedy recovery to those injured in the field while on duty.

Also at the meeting, the Crown Prince spoke about his field inspection on Tuesday at the site of the incident, and his visit to the injured who have been hospitalised.

His Royal Highness commended the swift response of all the concerned agencies, noting that the situation at the site of the incident and in Aqaba is under control and back to normal.

The Crown Prince reiterated the need to maintain cooperation and coordination among all the concerned entities, as all await the investigation’s findings.

For his part, Prime Minister Bisher Khasawneh gave an overview of the incident and the measures taken to contain its impact, noting that a team, headed by the interior minister was formed to investigate.

The prime minister said life is back to normal in Aqaba after the authorities reaffirmed air and seawater safety.