The day Villa Biarritz exploded: Four years after the tragedy, neighbors demand more controls amid gas leaks

Residents of Montevideo's Villa Biarritz neighborhood are renewing calls for stricter controls on gas leaks four years after a catastrophic explosion devastated the Caicobé building. The blast, caused by a massive gas accumulation in the building's pipes, occurred precisely at 9:11 AM, sending shockwaves felt kilometers away and scattering debris throughout the surrounding area.

Architects and engineers who inspected the site after the incident noted that the magnitude of the explosion suggested a far higher casualty count should have occurred. They repeatedly stated that, given the force of the blast, "there should have been 15 or 20 deaths." Miraculously, the tragedy claimed two lives, but numerous survivors recounted harrowing escapes.

Alberto, a resident on the 8th floor, described the moment the explosion shattered his morning routine. He was reading when the building seemed to collapse around him. A heavy wooden door was torn from its hinges by the blast wave, flying over his head and narrowly missing him before crashing onto the balcony. "I didn't get my neck broken by chance," he stated, recounting the event from his rebuilt apartment.

His wife, in the bedroom at the time, described glass shattering around her bed. Together, they evacuated the darkened building via the stairs, among the last to leave the scene, which resembled a war zone. The explosion happened on July 22, 2022, and the four-year anniversary was recently marked.

Federico, a resident on the second floor, had moved into his dream apartment just 30 days prior to the explosion, following extensive renovations. His wife and young daughter were in the rear of the apartment, a section that, by chance, was spared the brunt of the blast. He had left the apartment only ten minutes before the explosion to take his children to school. "It was a bomb, nothing was left," Federico said, reflecting on the destruction and the difficult process of returning to the rebuilt building, especially for his wife.