Four people are killed and over 500 are injured in an explosion at Iran’s Bandar Abbas Port

Four people have been killed and over 500 injured in an explosion at Iran’s Bandar Abbas port that was most likely caused by chemicals.

According to Iranian official media, a huge explosion at Bandar Abbas, Iran’s largest port, has killed at least four people and injured over 500 more.

Although there is no evidence linking the Saturday explosion in the Shahid Rajaee area of the port to ongoing nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States in Oman, it is thought to have been caused by chemicals kept in containers. 

The explosion was most likely caused by improper chemical storage, according to Hossein Zafari, spokesman for Iran’s crisis management organization. He told the ILNA news agency, “The chemicals inside the containers were the cause of the explosion.” The port had previously received a warning about the possible risks of incorrect storage. 

Although the precise cause of the explosion has not yet been identified, an Iranian government spokeswoman acknowledged that chemicals were probably involved. 

In addition to pictures of an office building devastated by the explosion, with its doors blown off and documents all over the place, state television showed a huge cloud of black and orange smoke rising above the port. 

The majority of Iran’s transit containers are handled in Bandar Abbas, which is situated on the country’s southern coast. The explosion was heard on Qeshm Island, 26 kilometers south of the harbor, and broke windows many kilometers distant. 

In the midst of tumultuous events, the semi-official Tasnim news agency posted pictures of injured people getting medical assistance. According to early reports, relief workers on the scene were trying to suppress fires when many canisters exploded, causing the explosion. 

According to authorities, trucks were evacuated from the area after the explosion, and port operations were suspended. Hazardous chemicals were probably present in the container yard where the explosion happened, according to customs officials.