Explosion in Bandar Abbas, Iran: Death toll and number of injured rising

The number of people who lost their lives in a violent explosion that occurred today at the Shahid Rajaee Port in the city of Bandar Abbas, located in Iran's Hormozgan province, has risen to 14, while the number of injured has reached 750.

DEATH TOLL AT 14, 750 INJURED IN EXPLOSION

The toll is worsening following a violent explosion at the Shahid Rajaee Port in the city of Bandar Abbas, in Iran's Hormozgan province. Speaking to Iranian state television, Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni announced that the number of people who lost their lives in today's explosion has risen to 14, and the number of injured has reached 750.

Momeni stated that 212 of the injured were treated on an outpatient basis, while the other injured individuals were taken for treatment at health centers in Hormozgan province and surrounding provinces.

FIRE SPREAD TO OTHER CONTAINERS

Stating that the fire has not yet been brought under control due to strong winds, Momeni reported that the fire has spread to other containers and that further explosions have occurred.

ALL SCHOOLS CLOSED

In a statement from the Hormozgan Province General Directorate of Crisis Management, it was announced that, in order to protect students' health due to air pollution caused by the explosion, education in all educational institutions in the city of Bandar Abbas has been suspended for one day tomorrow.

EXPLOSION OCCURRED IN AN AREA WHERE CHEMICAL SUBSTANCES ARE KEPT

An unnamed source speaking to the semi-official Fars News Agency said the incident occurred in an area at the port where chemical substances are kept.

Making a statement on the matter, Hormozgan Governor Mohammad Ashouri noted that the cause of the explosion is not yet known, but that the possibility of it being related to various flammable materials is being investigated.

Ashouri said, "The security of ports is monitored regularly, but Shahid Rajaee Port is a place where various goods are located. Serious warnings were issued, and we will announce the results in subsequent investigations."

POSSIBILITY OF SABOTAGE

Mehrdad Hasanzadeh, General Director of Crisis Management for Hormozgan, also stated that they had previously warned authorities regarding security at the port.

Iranian Crisis Management Spokesperson Hossein Zeferi reported that the port is a container terminal and that chemical substances were stored in many of the containers there.

The Iranian official stated, "It has been determined that the explosion was caused by chemicals inside the containers. The General Director of Crisis Management had previously issued warnings regarding this port during his visits and had drawn attention to the possibility of danger."

Zeferi stated that the possibility of the explosion being caused by sabotage is low.

Ebrahim Rezaei, Spokesperson for the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of the Iranian Parliament, also rejected the possibility of sabotage at this time, saying that claims that the incident was an act of terrorism or sabotage are merely media speculation.

OPERATIONS AT THE PORT HALTED

It was announced that operations at the strategic port, where a significant portion of the country's exports are carried out, have been completely halted.

In a statement made by the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration, it was reported that export shipments at Shahid Rajaee Port have been suspended until further notice.

Following the explosion, Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni went to the city of Bandar Abbas to examine the scale of the incident on-site, under the instructions of President Masoud Pezeshkian.

President Pezeshkian also ordered a special investigation to examine the scale of the explosion.