The explosion at the Shahid Rajaee port in the city of Bandar Abbas in the southern Iranian province of Hormozgan was caused by negligence, the culprits have been found, and an investigation is underway, said Iranian Interior Minister Iskandar Momeni.
“A commission was formed to conduct an investigation, the culprits have been detained, they explained some issues regarding the explosion, and the investigation is ongoing. I already explained yesterday how this tragedy occurred. There was negligence, in particular, violation of safety rules and carelessness,” the Mehr agency quotes the minister as saying.
A powerful explosion thundered on Saturday afternoon at the Shahid Rajaee port in the city of Bandar Abbas. Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani told the Fars agency that it occurred at a warehouse containing chemicals, but it is still difficult to judge its causes. At the same time, the media reported that the explosion was caused by a fire in one of the fuel tanks. According to Iranian media, the explosion was so powerful that it was heard on Qeshm Island, located approximately 20 kilometers from the port of Bandar Abbas in the Persian Gulf. The explosion blew out windows within a radius of several kilometers. The country’s authorities ordered an investigation.