The death toll from Wednesday's explosion at Intel's factory in Kiryat Gat rose to two on Thursday after a 49-year-old man died of his injuries at Soroka Medical Center in Beersheba.
The hospital said the man had been evacuated from the scene Wednesday in serious condition with multiple injuries. He died despite prolonged resuscitation efforts.
The fire following the explosion in Kiryat Gat
(Video: Israel Fire and Rescue Authority)
A gas technician at Intel was pronounced dead Wednesday after being critically injured in the same explosion. A third victim, a man in his 20s, remains hospitalized in serious condition in Soroka's medical intensive care unit, where he is sedated and on a ventilator.
All three victims were injured in the explosion at the technology giant's manufacturing facility in southern Israel. Police suspect the blast was caused by a gas cylinder that exploded during the unloading of trucks.
(Photo: Israel Fire and Rescue Authority)
The explosion sparked a fire and a leak of nitrogen trifluoride (NF₃), a nonflammable but toxic gas that poses serious inhalation risks. Hazardous materials teams conducted continuous monitoring and risk assessments to determine the dangers associated with the leak. Authorities later said the threat to nearby residents had been removed.
Kiryat Gat police commander Shai Aleli said investigators had not established whether criminal activity or negligence was involved.
"At this point, I can't point to any suspicion of criminal activity or negligence," Aleli said at the scene. "We understand that one truck unloaded material into tanks at the factory. After it disconnected and a second truck connected, the explosion occurred. We understand there was a malfunction."