A huge blast on Saturday likely caused by the explosion of chemical materials stored at Iran's biggest port, Bandar Abbas, killed at least five people and injured more than 700, Iranian state media reported.
The explosion, which hit the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, occurred as Iran began a third round of nuclear talks with the United States in Oman, but there was no immediate indication of a link between the two events.
Hossein Zafari, a spokesperson for Iran's crisis management organisation, appeared to blame the explosion on poor storage of chemicals in containers at Shahid Rajaee.
"The cause of the explosion was the chemicals inside the containers," he told Iran's ILNA news agency.
"Previously, the Director General of Crisis Management had given warnings to this port during their visits and had pointed out the possibility of danger," Zafari said.
An Iranian government spokesperson, however, said that although chemicals had likely caused the blast, it was not yet possible to determine the exact reason.
The explosion occurred at the Sina container yard, affiliated with Iran’s Ports and Maritime Organization, more than 1,000 kilometres south of Tehran, according to the Iranian Customs Authority.
Emergency services said the injured were transferred to medical facilities across Hormozgan province. Authorities have launched an initial investigation into the cause of the blast.
Iranian state television quoted Mehrdad Hassanzadeh, head of Hormozgan’s crisis management agency, as saying that safety officials had previously issued warnings over the storage of flammable materials at the site.
Social media footage showed thick black smoke and large flames rising from the affected area. Other videos showed damage to nearby buildings and vehicles, with people attending to the wounded.
Esmaeil Malekizadeh, an official from the Hormozgan Ports and Maritime Administration, said the explosion occurred near the Shahid Rajaei port dock, a major hub for container traffic and petrochemical storage.
In 2020, Shahid Rajaei port was also the target of a suspected cyberattack attributed to Israel, which disrupted operations for several days.
Authorities said a more detailed investigation into Saturday’s incident is ongoing.
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