A significant explosion occurred at the Shahid Rajaee section of Bandar Abbas port in southwestern Iran, resulting in four deaths and over 500 injuries. The explosion, possibly linked to stored chemicals, generated a large plume of smoke visible in geolocated videos. The fire has been contained, and the port's operations are suspended.
The blast caused extensive damage, including shattered windows within several kilometers and the collapse of at least one building. Many were injured and some reportedly trapped in the rubble. Injured individuals were transported to local medical centers. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian ordered an investigation, and the interior minister was dispatched to assess the situation.
While the exact cause remains under investigation, initial reports suggest the explosion involved chemicals stored in port containers. The government stated that determining the precise cause would take time. The Shahid Rajaee port, a major facility handling 70 million tons of cargo annually, including oil, remains closed.
CNN —
Four people have been killed and more than 500 injured in a huge explosion at the port of Bandar Abbas in southwestern Iran, according to official Iranian media and emergency services.
The explosion sent a huge plume of thick, gray smoke from the Shahid Rajaee part of the port complex, according to videos geolocated by CNN, with the government saying the blast was likely linked to chemicals being stored.
The head of the Iranian emergency services said four people had died in the blast. A spokesperson for the emergency services earlier said 516 had been injured.
A video distributed by the Mehr news agency showed surveillance footage of the moment of the explosion, which appears to have occurred in a warehouse at the port. Other footage showed helicopters dropping water at the site of the fire ignited by the explosion.
Debris was spread over a wide area and many buildings at the port complex were badly damaged, according to state media. Windows within a radius of several kilometers were shattered, they said.
Some reports said people were trapped in the wreckage of a building that was reduced to rubble.
The region’s governor, Mohammad Ashouri Taziani, said injured people were being transferred to Bandar Abbas medical centers and the fire had been contained. The port has been closed and maritime operations suspended, according to state media.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has ordered an investigation into the causes of the incident. He wrote on X that the interior minister had been sent to the region to “examine the dimensions of the accident.”
State broadcaster IRIB said the explosion took place in the chemical and sulfur area of the port.
A government spokeswoman, Fatemeh Mohajerani, said it would take some time to establish the cause of the explosion – “but so far what has been determined is that containers were stored in a corner of the port that likely contained chemicals which exploded. But until the fire is extinguished, it’s hard to ascertain the cause.”
Shahid Rajaee is a large facility for container shipments, covering 2,400 hectares (around 5,900 acres). It handles 70 million tons of cargo annually, including oil and general shipping. It has nearly 500,000 square meters (5.4 million square feet) of warehouses and 35 shipping berths.
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