At least 4 killed, nearly 600 injured in massive explosion at port in southern Iran
TEHRAN, Iran
At least four people have died and nearly 600 others injured in a massive explosion that ripped through the Shahid Rajaee Port in southern Iran on Saturday, officials said.
In a televised interview with the state broadcaster, Babak Mahmoudi, head of the Relief and Rescue Organization, confirmed the initial toll from the explosion.
He said emergency personnel were immediately dispatched to the scene to transfer the injured to medical centers, and firefighting teams are working to extinguish the blaze.
The number of injured has been steadily rising. The National Emergency Organization in its latest update said at least 560 people have been injured and transferred to nearby hospitals.
President Masoud Pezeshkian, in a statement on X, expressed sorrow and sympathy with the victims and issued an order to investigate the causes of the incident.
He said Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni had been dispatched to the region as his special representative “to conduct a thorough investigation into the dimensions of the incident, ensure necessary coordination, and attend to the condition of the injured.”
Earlier, Momeni instructed the provincial authorities in Hormozgan to submit a preliminary report on the incident, his office said in a statement.
Iran’s First Vice President Mohammad Aref also held separate phone calls with the governor of Hormozgan province and head of the Red Crescent Society, issuing necessary directives.
Iran’s Customs Administration ordered all customs offices to halt the dispatch of export and transit shipments destined for Shahid Rajaee Customs at Bandar Abbas until further notice.
According to local media, a fire broke out at around 12 pm local time (08:30 GMT) at Shahid Rajaee Port, specifically in the container dock area. Initial reports suggest the presence of flammable materials near the site of the explosion.
Quoting witnesses, reports said a minor fire quickly spread and triggered the explosion due to the extreme 40 degrees Celsius heat and the accumulation of flammable substances.
The National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company said the explosion and fire at the port are not related to the refineries, fuel storage tanks, or the distribution facilities and oil pipelines associated with the company.
The strategically important port, located in southern Hormozgan province, lies around 15 kilometers southwest of the port of Bandar Abbas on the northern shore of the Strait of Hormuz.
The intensity and scale of the explosion have drawn comparisons with the Beirut Port explosion in August 2020, which killed more than 200 people.
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