Daijiworld Media Network - Tehran
Tehran, Apr 26: At least four people were killed and 516 others injured on Saturday after a massive explosion rocked Shahid Rajaee Port in the city of Bandar Abbas, located in southern Iran's Hormozgan province, local media reported.
The injured have been transported to nearby medical centers, according to Babak Yektaparast, spokesman for Iran's Emergency Medical Services Organisation, as reported by Xinhua news agency citing the semi-official Fars News Agency. Yektaparast added that 90 hospital beds in Shiraz, the capital of neighboring Fars province, have been prepared to accommodate additional casualties if needed.
China's Consulate General in Bandar Abbas confirmed that three Chinese citizens sustained minor injuries in the blast. They have since received medical treatment and are reported to be in stable condition.
Initial reports by the official IRNA news agency suggested that the explosion originated from a gas tank at the port, sending a towering column of smoke into the sky and causing significant damage to nearby buildings and vehicles.
Later, Hossein Zafari, spokesman for Iran’s National Disaster Management Organisation, clarified to Fars News Agency that the blast was caused by chemical materials stored in a container at the port.
Shahid Rajaee Port, located roughly 1,000 kilometres south of Tehran and about 23 kilometres west of Bandar Abbas, is Iran’s most advanced container port. It sits near the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which about one-fifth of the world's oil output is transported.
Fatemeh Mohajerani, spokeswoman for the Iranian government, urged the public and media against making “hasty speculations” regarding the cause of the incident. She emphasized that investigations were still underway and confirmed only that the explosion involved containers, likely containing chemical materials, at a section of the port.
Rapid reaction and rescue teams were dispatched to the scene, and all port activities have been suspended. Reports suggest that the number of injured could continue to rise.
The explosion occurred against the backdrop of the third round of nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States in Oman. Although the cause of the explosion remains unclear, the timing has raised concerns. The ongoing discussions are led by US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, aiming to reach a new agreement to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions — an accusation Tehran has consistently denied — in exchange for relief from harsh economic sanctions.