15 people have been injured after a disgruntled customer ignited a shopping trolley filled with petrol cans and fireworks at a branch of an Australian insurance company.
Witnesses said the man wheeled the makeshift bomb into the insurance office in the northern city of Darwin and set it ablaze, leaving passers-by with cuts, burns and smoke inhalation injuries.
Two people remain in a serious condition.
'Once we cleared the area of smoke we found a shopping trolley with three jerry cans and a strong smell of fuel, and also firecrackers spread throughout the area,' a fire and rescue service spokesman said.
'The firecrackers were part of what could loosely be called an explosive device.'
A man surrendered himself at the nearby Darwin Police Station shortly after the attack and was taken into custody, said Commander Rob Kendrick.
The blast sent shoppers fleeing from a nearby supermarket and prompted the evacuation of the shopping centre in Darwin's main commercial street.
Police ruled out an extremist attack, saying the culprit appeared to be an unhappy customer of the insurance company.
'I can confirm he was a dissatisfied claimant,' Commander Colleen Gwynne said. ‘This is not a terrorist incident.
'In hindsight, I think we're very fortunate all round that we haven't lost any lives,' she added. 'This is an isolated incident by a dissatisfied customer, and it was an extremely callous act on his part.'
Ambulance officials said 13 people were taken to Royal Darwin Hospital with injuries ranging from ‘minor cuts to burns and smoke inhalation’, while another two travelled there independently.
TIO chief executive Richard Harding said the company had not received any threat or warning ahead of the blast.
