Blast in Salang Tunnel, a key route linking north and south of country, killed at least 19 people, says official At least 19 people were killed and 32 injured when a fuel tanker exploded in a tunnel north of the Afghan capital, Kabul, a local official has said. The Salang Tunnel, about 80 miles (130km) north of Kabul, was originally built in the 1960s to assist the Soviet invasion. It is a key route linking the country's north and south.