April 27, 2025 | 10:12 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - At least 14 people were killed and 750 others injured after a massive explosion and fire at Iran's largest commercial center, state news agency IRNA reported as cited by Al Jazeera on Sunday, April 27, 2025.
Helicopters doused the raging fire with water several hours after the initial blast on Saturday at Shahid Rajaei port, which is located more than 1,000 kilometers south of the capital, Tehran.
Hossein Zafari, a spokesman for Iran's crisis management organization, seemed to blame the explosion on poorly stored chemicals in containers at Shahid Rajaei.
"The cause of the explosion is the chemicals inside the container," he told Iran's ILNA news agency.
"Previously, the director-general of crisis management had issued a warning to this port during their visit and had indicated the possibility of danger," Zafari said.
However, a spokesman for the Iranian government said that although chemicals were likely the cause of the explosion, it was not yet possible to determine the exact reason.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian ordered an investigation into the incident and dispatched his interior minister to the scene, who said efforts were ongoing to extinguish the fire and prevent it from spreading to other areas.
Approximately 10 hours after the explosion at Shahid Rajaei Port in southern Iran, Press TV reported the fire was worsening.
With choking smoke spreading across the area, schools and offices located 23 km away in Bandar Abbas, the capital of Hormozgan province, were instructed to be closed on Sunday, Press TV said, to allow authorities to focus on emergency response efforts.
The National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company issued a statement saying the oil facilities in the area were not affected by the explosion.
"The explosion and fire at Shahid Rajaei Port have nothing to do with the oil refinery, fuel tanks, distribution complex, and oil pipeline network associated with this company," the company said.
Earlier, Esmaeil Malekizadeh, an official with the Maritime and Port Administration of Hormozgan, said the explosion occurred near the dock of Shahid Rajaei port.
Video on social media shows a large black plume of smoke and a fireball rocketing from the explosion site.
Another video shows damage to buildings and vehicles. Some people were also seen around the area helping the injured and inspecting property damage.
Shahid Rajaei port primarily handles container traffic and also has oil tanks and other petrochemical facilities.
The explosion occurred at a sensitive time as Iranian officials were engaged in talks with U.S. officials on the possibility of a new nuclear deal in Oman on the same day.
In May 2020, Israel was accused of launching a massive cyberattack at the same port, causing transportation chaos for days after damaging the facility's computer systems.
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