Goma danger warnings ignored

A fireball and plumes of smoke rise from the scene of the blast

GOMA, Congo -- More residents ignored warnings and returned to the volcano-stricken city of Goma on Monday -- as molten lava caused a petrol station to explode.

The refugees stepped over hot lava to reach their homes, some of which were destroyed when the Mount Nyiragongo erupted last Thursday.

Just across the border in Gisenyi, Rwanda, the Red Cross set up a centre for children who were separated from their families when they fled Goma.

Aid workers were concerned that residents were trying to return home so soon, because of lingering dangers from the volcano and hot lava. The United Nations said lava covered half the town.

An explosion at a station where gasoline was being stored killed scores, eyewitness said.

VIDEO Thousands are making the dangerous journey home, says CNN's Catherine Bond (January 20) Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)   YOUR SAY Your say: E-mail us your experiences    MORE STORIES • Desperation in Goma  • Mobile phones slow volcano relief  • Voices from the devastation  • Aid workers rethink efforts  • British, French ministers to visit  • Congo crisis: How to help    EXTRA INFORMATION Interactive: Anatomy of a volcano  • Gallery: Residents of Goma flee volcano  • Gallery: Residents return despite dangers  • Map: Goma lies in area prone to volcanic activity    COUNTRY PROFILE At a glance: Congo (DRC) Provided by CountryWatch.com

The blast occurred while people were trying to siphon gasoline from drums, and sent a huge fireball and thick plumes of dark smoke above the city.

Some witnesses reported that around 50 people had been killed, but there has been no independent confirmation. CNN's Catherine Bond said the number of dead was more likely to be around 30, as the building involved was small.

Two women and two children were reported to have been badly injured and taken to a local clinic.

Goma remained without electricity, and some residents were drawing water from Lake Kivu, which aid workers said had been tainted by molten rock and volcanic ash.

Relief agencies were rushing to set up fresh-water tanks to provide fresh water.

There is no food for many families, and people are sleeping outside. Residents were sorting through building debris trying to salvage possessions.

Many of Goma's residents fled to neighboring Rwanda when Mount Nyiragongo erupted, but decided to come home after they said Rwandans were inhospitable.

Some Goma residents said Rwandans refused to give them even a glass of water without asking for money.

"They wanted us to die. When we saw the sky clearing, we said we may as well go and die at home," one resident said on Sunday.

Aid workers had described the difficulty in distributing aid supplies to the displaced residents, who were scattered along roads straddling the Rwandan-Congolese border and in nearby hills.

One worker with World Vision estimated the number of refugees at 500,000.

Red Cross workers estimated the death toll from the volcano at 47, but said that number could rise.