A huge blast probably caused by the explosion of chemical materials has killed at least 25 people and injured more than 750 others at Iran’s biggest port, Bandar Abbas, Iranian state media reports.
“The total number of people killed is at least 25,” Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday, citing Hormozgan province’s head of the judiciary, Mojtaba Ghahremani.
Tasnim also reported that some of the injured victims were taken to other cities, including in Shiraz.
Thick smoke continued to billow at Shahid Rajaee section of the port on Sunday as rescue teams worked into the night.
The blast happened as Iran began a third round of nuclear talks with the United States in Oman, but there was no indication of a link between the two events.
Hossein Zafari, a spokesperson for Iran’s crisis management organisation, appeared to blame the explosion on poor storage of chemicals in containers at Shahid Rajaei.
“The cause of the explosion was the chemicals inside the containers,” he told Iran’s ILNA news agency.
“Previously, the director general of crisis management had given warnings to this port during their visits and had pointed out the possibility of danger,” Zafari said.
However, an Iranian government spokesperson said that although chemicals had likely caused the blast, it was not yet possible to determine the exact reason.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian ordered an investigation of the incident and sent to the site his interior minister, who said efforts were continuing to extinguish the fire and prevent it from spreading to other areas.
About 10 hours after the blast at Shahid Rajaei Port in southern Iran, Press TV reported the fire had intensified.
With choking smoke spreading throughout the area, schools and offices 23km (14 miles) away in Bandar Abbas, the Hormozgan provincial capital, have been ordered closed on Sunday, Press TV said, to allow authorities to focus on the emergency effort.
National Iranian Oil Products Refining and Distribution Company issued a statement saying oil facilities in the area were not affected by the blast.
“The explosion and fire in Shahid Rajaei Port have no connection to refineries, fuel tanks, distribution complexes and oil pipelines related to this company,” the company said.
Earlier, Hormozgan Ports and Maritime Administration official Esmaeil Malekizadeh said the explosion took place near the Shahid Rajaei port dock.
Social media videos showed a huge plume of black smoke and a ball of fire rising from the area of the explosion.
Other videos showed damage to buildings and vehicles. Several people were also seen around the area attending to the injured and checking the damage to the properties.
Shahid Rajaei port mainly handles container traffic and also has oil tanks and other petrochemical facilities.
In May 2020, Israel was accused of launching a major cyberattack on the same port, causing transport chaos for days after crashing the facility’s computer system.
The blast comes at a sensitive time as Iranian officials continue to engage in talks with United States officials on a possible new nuclear deal.
