Five individuals have lost their lives and more than 700 have sustained injuries in a massive explosion at the port of Bandar Abbas in southwestern Iran, as reported by official Iranian media.
The explosion resulted in a thick plume of gray smoke rising from the Shahid Rajaee section of the port complex, as shown in videos identified by CNN. Authorities have indicated that the blast may be linked to chemicals stored in the area.
The head of the Iranian emergency services confirmed four fatalities from the explosion. Initially, a spokesperson for the emergency services had reported 516 injuries.
A video released by the Mehr news agency depicted surveillance footage capturing the moment of the explosion, believed to have originated in a warehouse at the port. Additional footage showed helicopters dousing the fire caused by the explosion with water.
Debris was scattered across a wide area, with numerous buildings at the port complex sustaining significant damage, according to state media. Reports indicated that windows within several kilometers were shattered.
There are reports of individuals trapped in the debris of a building that was completely destroyed.
The governor of the region, Mohammad Ashouri Taziani, mentioned that injured individuals were being transported to medical facilities in Bandar Abbas and that the fire had been brought under control. The port has been shut down and maritime operations halted, as per state media.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has initiated an investigation into the incident. He stated that the interior minister has been dispatched to the area to assess the situation.
State broadcaster IRIB disclosed that the explosion occurred in the chemical and sulfur section of the port.
A government spokesperson, Fatemeh Mohajerani, explained that determining the cause of the explosion would require time. She mentioned that containers believed to contain chemicals were stored in a specific area of the port, which likely led to the explosion. However, establishing the exact cause is challenging until the fire is extinguished.
Shahid Rajaee is a significant facility for container shipments, covering 2,400 hectares (approximately 5,900 acres). It handles 70 million tons of cargo annually, including oil and general shipping. The port features nearly 500,000 square meters (5.4 million square feet) of warehouses and 35 shipping berths.
CNN's Kareem El Damanhoury and Mohammed Tawfeeq contributed to this report.